Josh Hendrickson
Hamilton, the broadway musical that took the world by storm in 2015, was destined for a theater run next year. Disney bought the worldwide rights and planned to release the film version on October 15th, 2021. But in a surprise move, that changed, and now Hamilton is coming straight to Disney+ on July 3rd, 2020. That’s more than a year early.
Now, if you’re worried about a Cats level debacle, we good news for you. Tom Hooper isn’t involved, and this isn’t a reimagining for the film. Instead, back in 2016, before any of the original cast left, a professional crew filmed three live performances.
You’ll get to see an edited version of Hamilton that combines those three performances into one. So if you’re like most people who couldn’t see Hamilton at the height of its popularity, this will be your chance to see it with the original cast and crew.
The fact that Disney is skipping the theatrical release entirely, and that it plans to release on Disney+ more than a year early is astonishing.
“No other artistic work in the last decade has had the cultural impact of ‘Hamilton’—an inspiring and captivating tale told and performed in a powerfully creative way. In light of the extraordinary challenges facing our world, this story about leadership, tenacity, hope, love and the power of people to unite against the forces of adversity is both relevant and impactful,” said Robert A. Iger, Executive Chairman of The Walt Disney Company. “We are thrilled to bring this phenomenon to Disney+ on the eve of Independence Day, and we have the brilliant Lin-Manuel Miranda and the team behind ‘Hamilton’ to thank for allowing us to do so more than a year before planned.”
The date itself is no surprise, given the significance of Alexander Hamilton’s significance in U.S. history and the July 4th holiday weekend. The choice to skip the theater follows similar moves from Pixar’s Onward and NBCUniversal’s Trolls World Tour.
Source: Disney
