tick, tick… BOOM! tells the story of Jonathan Larson, the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and playwright of Rent who passed away before the musical became a Broadway sensation. In the film (based on the musical of the same name), Larson is played by Andrew Garfield, with supporting performances from Alexandra Shipp, Vanessa Hudgens, Robin de Jesús, Joshua Henry, Judith Light, and Bradley Whitford.
Rent is close to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s heart, so he made tick, tick… BOOM! his directorial debut. “Rent rocked my perception of what musical theater could be in several ways. It was the first musical I had ever seen with a cast as diverse as the subway riders I saw on the way to school. It was the first musical I had ever seen that took place in the present day, and sounded like the present day,” the Hamilton star wrote for the New York Times. Now he’ll pay his respects to Larson’s legacy on the big screen.
Here’s the official plot summary:
The film follows Jon (Andrew Garfield), a young theater composer who’s waiting tables at a New York City diner in 1990 while writing what he hopes will be the next great American musical. Days before he’s due to showcase his work in a make-or-break performance, Jon is feeling the pressure from everywhere: from his girlfriend Susan, who dreams of an artistic life beyond New York City; from his friend Michael, who has moved on from his dream to a life of financial security; amidst an artistic community being ravaged by the AIDS epidemic. With the clock ticking, Jon is at a crossroads and faces the question everyone must reckon with: What are we meant to do with the time we have?
tick, tick… BOOM! comes out in select theaters and on Netflix this November.