Film & TV NewsJune 2021 Streaming: In The Heights, Annie, Rent, More Theatre Favorites ComingSee what’s arriving on HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and more this month.
By
Dan Meyer, Logan Culwell-Block
June 01, 2021
In The Heights, Annie, and Rent
Crank up that air-conditioning and get ready for some of the hottest movie musical adaptations to hit streamers in June. This month, In The Heights is here after years of waiting, kids can discover a contemporary take on Annie, and theatre lovers can revisit the 2006 stage-to-screen adaptation of Jonathan Larson’s Rent.
On TV, The Good Fight returns with another Tony winner, Mandy Patinkin, joining the ranks alongside Christine Baranski and Audra McDonald. In addition, Rose Byrne leads a new series, Physical, about the ‘80s aerobic craze and the musical animated TV series Central Park returns for Season 2.
Check out the full list below. Titles are available June 1 unless otherwise noted.
Annie The 1977 Broadway musical gets a modern day update in this 2014 film adaptation starring Quvenzhané Wallis in the title role. The original’s orphanage has become a foster home run by Hannigan (Cameron Diaz), with Daddy Warbucks becoming New York City mayoral candidate Will Stacks (Jamie Foxx). The film updates Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin’s beloved score, with modern takes on “Maybe,” “It’s the Hard-Knock Life,” “Tomorrow,” and more.
Mila Kunis and Natalie Portman in Black SwanTwentieth Century Fox
Black Swan Natalie Portman stars as New York City Ballet dancer Nina in this psychological thriller about the mental and emotional tolls of artistry. Directed by Darren Aronofsky, the film revolves around a New York City Ballet production of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. Along with Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Barbara Hershey, and Winona Ryder, the film features a performance from New York City Ballet principal dancer Benjamin Millepied.
Rent This 1996 Pulitzer- and Tony-winning musical made its way to the big screen with most of its original Broadway cast intact—including Idina Menzel, Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, Jesse L. Martin, Wilson Jermaine Heredia, and more—in this 2005 film adaptation. The Jonathan Larson musical, inspired by the Puccini opera La Bohéme, centers on a group of Bohemians living in New York City’s East Village.
Physical (June 18) Emmy nominee and stage favorite Rose Byrne plays housewife Sheila Rubin as she embarks upon a challenge very apropos of the ‘80s: building a video aerobics empire. Joining her on screen are Broadway alums Paul Sparks and Dierdre Friel, along with Rory Scovel, Della Seba, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Ashley Liao. The trailer for the dark comedy offers a glimpse of Rubin’s mindset, which is aggressive, ambitious, and tormented all at the same time—perfect for the scorching heat of the summer.
Central Park(June 25) The animated musical comedy series—featuring the voices of Tony winners Daveed Diggs and Leslie Odom, Jr., Tony nominees Josh Gad, Kathryn Hahn, Tituss Burgess, and another Hamilton alum Emmy Raver-Lapman who replaces Kristen Bell from Season 1—returns for another romp around the iconic NYC landmark.
Loki (June 9) This new series from Marvel Studios picks up where Avengers: Endgame left off, with the God of Mischief stepping out from his brother’s shadow. Tom Hiddleston (Betrayal on Broadway) stars in the title role, leading a cast that includes Owen Wilson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sophia Di Martino, Wunmi Mosaku, and Richard E. Grant.
HBO Max
Camelot Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave star as King Arthur and Guinevere, respectively, in this 1967 stage-to-screen adaptation of Lerner and Loewe’s take on the beloved Medieval tale. The musical also features Franco Nero as Lancelot and David Hemmings as Mordred, both of whom throw a wrench into King Arthur’s idyllic plans for Camelot.
The Harry Potter Film Series Spread over eight films, the story of a boy wizard who discovers his fate is intertwined with the most evil being to wield a wand is an epic journey. Starring Broadway alums Daniel Radcliffe as Harry and Rupert Grint as Ron, plus Emma Watson as Hermoine, the series features a bevvy of stage favorites in supporting character roles. A review of the films is always worthwhile ahead of checking out Harry Potter and the Cursed Child—the official sequel that debuted on Broadway in 2018 and won a Tony Award for Best Play.
Victor/Victoria Julie Andrews plays an impoverished female singer who pretends to be a man named Victor so she can get work as a drag queen named Victoria. As Victoria reaches new heights, she finds huge success in Paris nightclubs—and the attention of a Chicago gangster. The 1982 film inspired a stage musical of the same name, also starring Andrew, in the mid-90’s.
Melissa Barrera, Stephanie Beatriz, Leslie Grace, Dascha Polanco, and Daphne Rubin-Vega in In The HeightsMacall Polay/Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc
In the Heights(June 11) Adapted from Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes’ Tony-winning musical, the film sees rising star Anthony Ramos stepping into the role of Usnavi. Olga Merediz reprises Aunt Claudia from the Broadway production, welcoming newcomers Melissa Barerra as Vanessa and Leslie Grace as Nina. Broadway favorite Daphne Rubin-Vega plays Daniela, with Miranda, Christopher Jackson, Patrick Page, Javier Munoz, Scott Speedman, and the late Doreen Montalvo making cameos.
The Birdcage Directed by Mike Nichols and adapted from the original French play by Elaine May, this 1996 comedy stars Nathan Lane and Robin Williams as a gay couple who run a drag cabaret club in Miami. When their son announces his engagement, the pair are in over their heads as they prepare to meet the fiancée, whose parents are very conservative. Hilarity ensues in this lighthearted look at what happens when two families from opposite sides of the aisle come together to celebrate love. Sound familiar? The same source material inspired the 1983 Jerry Herman-Harvey Fierstein musical La Cage Aux Folles.
Charlotte’s Web Based on the beloved E.B. White novel, this 1973 animated musical film features a tuneful score by The Sherman Brothers (Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) and a cast full of theatre favorites, including Debbie Reynolds, Paul Lynde, and Agnes Moorehead.
The Full Monty This charming film follows a group of unemployed factory workers in rural England who, against all odds, decide to bare all—and that means all—in a striptease act for their family and friends. David Yazbeck and Terrence McNally moved the action to Buffalo, New York for their 2000 stage musical adaptation starring Patrick Wilson.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Tim Burton, one of the cinema’s favorite gothic-horror directors, took on Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s gothic-horror musical masterpiece in 2007. Burton had reportedly been interested in adapting the work for the screen since seeing the original production’s West End run in the early 1980s. Burton regulars Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter star as Sweeney Todd and his accomplice Mrs. Lovett in a notably gorier take on the operatic musical’s story of murder, revenge, and, of course, cannibalism. Broadway and West End favorite Laura Michelle Kelly co-stars as the Beggar Woman.
Why Women Kill (June 3) The Mark Cherry anthology series returns with Alison Tolman starring as a housewife who is eager to join one of the mid-20th century’s biggest crazes—a garden club—only to find the ideals of beauty and facade are not to her taste. Joining Tolman on screen is Tony winner Rachel Bay Jones as Maisie, a vulnerable nightclub singer—fingers crossed we get some of that sweet, sweet crooning the star is known for.
Audra McDonald and Christine Baranski
CBS
The Good Fight (June 24) The star-studded legal drama returns after its fourth season was cut short due to the pandemic. After the loss of two of the firm’s top lawyers, Diane (Christine Baranski) questions whether it’s appropriate for her to help run an African American law firm with Liz (Audra McDonald). Meanwhile, Marissa (Sarah Steele) and the firm become entangled with Hal Wackner (Mandy Patinkin), a regular Chicagoan who decides to open his own courtroom in the back of a copy shop.
Filmed in 2023, the one-night-only event featured Brian Stokes Mitchell, Audra McDonald, Peter Friedman, and more from the Ahrens and Flaherty musical's original cast.
Surrounded by period-accurate, 19th-century holiday decorations lit via candlelight, the 70-minute production is based on Dickens' own script of the classic.
