In The Heights: Lin-Manuel Miranda’s latest film highlights the struggles and joys of the Latino community
“In the Heights, it gets more expensive every day.”
That’s the message from the fictional residents of the real community of Washington Heights in New York – the focus of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s latest release.
Already synonymous with the record-breaking Hamilton (which is about to hit Broadway and West End stages again), Miranda’s first musical, the Tony-winning In The Heights, highlights the struggles – and joys – of living in this mostly Latino community in the Big Apple.
Lin-Manuel Miranda is the brains behind In The Heights. Pic: Warner Bros Studios
It first ran on Broadway in 2008 – but now 13 years on, the unique issues that community faces remain the same – a reflection on society in the real world.
In just two hours and 20 minutes, we hear about undocumented immigrants, ICE (Immigration Compliance and Enforcement) raids, racism, gentrification and poverty in this diverse neighbourhood – as well as the joy and excitement of a community that is talked about so little in mainstream cinema.
And it wouldn’t be a Lin-Manuel Miranda musical without his rap numbers, comic relief, big dance breaks and catchy pop tunes.
“It’s never a bad time to remind people of our humanity,” Miranda, who grew up in the real Washington Heights, told Sky News, when asked why now was a good time to bring this musical to the big screen.
He added: “It’s always going to be relevant.
“There’s such a meagre representation of Latinos in a positive light in mainstream media that it’s always going to feel like now is the perfect time because it’s always overdue.
“We filmed this in the summer of 2019 and the poignancy and power of seeing people in community together, like singing and hugging each other and kissing, dancing in the streets is the power of what we can do together, I think really radiates off the screen, and as the kids say, ‘it hits different’ now than it may have at an earlier time.”
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Miranda is one of the most in-demand people in showbiz – hot off the heels of his record and ground-breaking musical Hamilton, he has penned songs, acted in movies and voice characters for a number of projects.
And it doesn’t stop there – he is making his directorial debut soon with Netflix’s Tick, Tick… Boom and he’s on board for the live-action remake for The Little Mermaid.
In The Heights, which has a cast entirely made up of Latino performers and was co-written with Quiara Alegría Hudes, is centred around Usnavi (named after the time his father spotted a US Navy ship sailing by their home country of the Dominican Republic), who dreams of ditching his bodega (or corner shop to us Britons) and flying back to the Caribbean.
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Anthony Ramos on his role as Usnavi
He’s played by Anthony Ramos, who UK fans might know, again, from Hamilton, where he played John Laurens and Philip Hamilton.
“Usnavi is a guy that… cares about his community,” he told Sky News.
“He takes care of his cousin, he takes care of, she’s not really his grandmother, but the matriarch of the block, if you will, and of the community.
“Both his parents passed away, he inherited a business that he didn’t ask for, but he does it with as much grace as possible.”
He adds that the character is relatable to everyone, saying: “Who hasn’t gone through that? Where you have days with some good, some not so good. It’s just it’s just a story about community and people in love, and family and music and culture.”
Ramos describes his character as the “invisible thread” that runs through the film as we meet the residents of Washington Heights trying to get through their lives – whether it’s the gossip girls from the salon, his cousin Sonny dealing with his immigration status or Abuela Claudia, who just wants to look after the block.
Sonny, Usnavi’s cousin and assistant in his bodega, is an undocumented citizen – a story that has grown in prominence over the last decade or so in the US due to fierce debates around border crossings – with an estimated 10 million people living in the country without the paperwork.
However, Gregory Diaz III, who plays Sonny, told Sky News that despite the problems sprouting from his character’s immigration status, he wanted to portray the good in his life.
He said: “Not wanting (his immigration status) to be something that defines him or something that holds him down – it’s something that both Sonny and I together want to elevate and really push forward those positive messages.”
And he gets his chance on screen, delivering a powerful rap during musical number 96,000, saying that if he won the lottery, he’d invest in education and technology, adding: “Politicians be hatin’, racism in this nation’s gone from latent to blatant, I’ll cash my ticket and picket, invest in protest, never lose my focus ’til the city takes notice.”
Abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz) and Sonny (Gregory Diaz III) share differing stories of immigration in the film. Pic: Warner Bros Studios
Elsewhere in the film, characters Vanessa and Nina also reflect on their experiences of living in Washington Heights – with both having to deal with racism at some point in the film.
Nina is the first of her family, and everyone she knows, to go to university (at Stanford none the less) with her family sacrificing the business to help her – but she drops out amid fears she is racially profiled by those around her, sharing a story about how she was wrongfully accused of stealing from her roommate on her first day.
Her father, Kevin, who is played by West Wing and Star Wars actor Jimmy Smits, secretly sells his cab company to a wealthy developer (who is slowly taking over the whole block, pricing out the local community) to get her back in – but it is Sonny’s story that gives her the drive to go back to California.
Vanessa dreams of being a fashion designer and has saved a deposit (in cash) for an apartment in Downtown Manhattan where she can work from – however when she goes to hand over the money, she’s told her credit isn’t good enough, despite having cash and rent upfront, before a seemingly middle-class white couple is welcomed into the property instead.
Vanessa (Melissa Barrera) faces a struggle to achieve her dream of being a fashion designer. Pic: Warner Bros Studios
Melissa Barrera, a Mexican music and TV star, who plays Vanessa, told Sky News: “I think it’s a reflection of how a lot of things have not changed in a really long time and how certain communities continue to feel ostracised, especially in countries where they’re minorities.
“I think it’s about time to see their stories told in a positive light and to honour and acknowledge the contributions that communities like these have.”
Leslie Grace, who plays Nina, added: “I think it does reflect that on lots of things we still have a lot of work to do… but it also is aspirational in the sense that we can do it.”
The salon girls offer some comic relief in the film. Pic: Warner Bros Studios
Completing the ensemble we have:
• The salon girls, who share gossip about the Heights in their beauty parlour (Brooklyn 99 fans will spot Stephanie Beatriz ditching the no-nonsense, gruff-voiced attitude of cop Rosa, for the excitable and bouncy hairdresser Carla).
• Benny, played by Walking Dead actor Corey Hawkins, the film’s only black character who works for Nina’s dad and is Usnavi’s best friend, dreams of going to business school. He is worried about the Heights becoming too expensive for the long-standing community there.
• Abuela Claudia, the community matriarch played by Olga Merediz, who performs an emotional number on how her family came from Cuba, lived in relative poverty and didn’t stop working until her parents passed away.
Merediz, who also originated the role of Abuela Claudia on Broadway in 2008, told Sky News: “I want everybody to see us and to see that we are just like everyone else.
“We have dreams like everyone else. We are focused on family, and that we have our nannies or our grandmothers, the rocks of the of the family, the community, that we are hardworking, that we’re joyous, that we’re passionate.“
The person bringing this unique film together is director Jon M Chu, who is perhaps best known as the man behind Crazy Rich Asians.
He told Sky News that the movie shows how people deal with the issues presented to them, saying that “the world is changing and we cannot fight it”.
Chu added: “I’m not from Washington Heights and I’m not Latino, and yet it spoke to me so personally about what it feels like to be raised by your family – not by just your parents or by your aunts and your uncles – by your grandparents and the expectations they put on you and how that can be hard to deal with and finding your own path.”
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Jon M Chu: We use films to cope
But amid the political and emotional messaging, and the struggles in the community – the film is bursting full of singing, rapping and dancing.
At its heart, it is a movie musical with big ensemble numbers (96,000, shot at a swimming pool, is already a fan favourite, as is the colourful block-carnival scene), exciting dance breaks and impressive visuals – something which is sure to make it one of the summer’s biggest films.
Miranda sums it up, telling Sky News: “There’s a really specific kind of weightless goose-bumps feeling that only musicals give me. I remember feeling it for the first time in the movies when I saw the Under The Sea number in The Little Mermaid… just feeling like, ‘oh my God, this is a musical number under water!’
“I’ll never forget the feeling of being a little lighter than air walking out of that theatre – I hope people leave our movie with that same feeling.”
In The Heights is out in cinemas across the UK on 18 June, and tickets for Hamilton in the West End are on sale now.
Entertainment
Scottish singer drafted in to replace Olly Murs at Glasgow Take That concert thought offer was a ‘joke’
A Scottish singer plucked from obscurity at the last minute to replace Olly Murs as the opening act for Take That in Glasgow has told Sky News he thought the life-changing opportunity was a “joke”.
Daniel Rooney, 26, was playing at the Radisson Red hotel opposite the OVO Hydro when news broke that Murs was forced to cancel his support act on Friday due to transport issues.
TV presenter Ross King, who was enjoying a family dinner at the hotel, was impressed with Mr Rooney’s vocals and recommended the singer to his friend and Take That frontman Gary Barlow.
With 30 minutes to go before the show was due to start, Mr Rooney was quickly whisked to the arena and opened the festivities with a range of upbeat cover songs.
Barlow later thanked him on Instagram.
Take That: Howard Donald, Gary Barlow and Mark Owen. Pic: PA
Mr Rooney, from Cambuslang in South Lanarkshire, told Sky News he thought it was a wind-up at first.
He said: “I was thinking, ‘right, who’s trying to play a wee joke on me here’. But thankfully it wasn’t a joke and Ross King was saying, ‘I’ve got an opportunity of a lifetime here, Danny boy, so are you up for it?’
“And I was.”
Mr Rooney started to feel a mixture of emotions on his way to the stage. As well as excitement, he began to feel apprehensive about what he was going to play.
He said: “I was obviously buzzing just to get that news. It was just mental.
“I had a wee discussion with the boys from Take That, who were brilliant and really good with me.
“We just agreed on making it really fun and making the songs nice big singalongs.
“It was just really great. The crowd were brilliant, and they sang to every song and the feedback was magic.”
Mr Rooney paid tribute to Mr King for the opportunity and thanked him for his warm introduction onstage to explain the situation to the crowd.
Speaking to Sky News, Mr King said: “I was listening to [Mr Rooney] while I was having dinner and was very impressed – never thinking that 30 minutes later I’d be saying ‘come with me and support Take That’.
“Gary Barlow is one of my closest pals and I’ve known the band since 1990. When Gary called me and said ‘you’re going to have to go on, Olly is stuck in London’, I thought it was a wind-up. But no.”
Mr King agreed to go on, but then pitched the idea of Mr Rooney.
Mr King added: “Daniel was the coolest guy in the Hydro and played a blinder. I was thrilled to share the stage with him and help out my old mates too.
“I know this has made news all around the world, so I hope Daniel continues to have the success he deserves.”
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Mr Rooney now intends to head into the studio to record some music.
He added: “I’ve got some ideas and demos there, so this is the opportunity to get them out now and just really capitalise on the moment.”
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Olly Murs. Pic: PA
Murs apologised for cancelling his performance at short notice after falling foul of flight issues.
The former X Factor star said he had been at Heathrow from 11am ahead of his performance on Friday night, but the flight was cancelled after “several delays” and an accident with a cabin crew member.
He later shared a video of himself being driven to Glasgow for his Saturday and Sunday performances.
Speaking on ITV’s Lorraine programme on Monday, Murs paid tribute to Mr Rooney for holding his nerve and being able to perform in front of an arena crowd of thousands with just 30 minutes’ notice.
Murs said: “Fair play to him, that’s amazing. You know what, credit to him.”
The 68th Eurovision Song Contest is taking place in Malmo, Sweden, this year.
It’s a spiritual homecoming of sorts with Sweden’s supergroup Abba – who are the most famous band ever to come out of the contest – crowned the winners 50 years ago.
Loved and loathed in equal measure for its euro pop earworms, evocative power ballads, and eye-watering novelty acts, there’s no clear frontrunner for this year’s show – meaning it’s all to play for.
The political elephant in the room is of course Israel’s participation in light of the ongoing Gaza war, with many artists encouraged to boycott the event due to their participation.
As it stands, no act has withdrawn from the contest.
So, with 37 countries heading into the semi-finals ahead of a grand final featuring 26 songs on Saturday, who might we see take first place on the night?
The top three
Croatia is currently the country to beat, with Baby Lasagne (real name Marko Purisic) singing Rim Tim Tagi Dim.
The 28-year-old bleach-blonde frontman says the title doesn’t translate as anything, other than a catchy repeated riff, but a serious theme lies beneath the full-on performance.
Croatia’s Baby Lasagna with Rim Tim Tagi Dim. Pic: Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU
The song describes the tension of young Croatians leaving their homeland to seek better opportunities abroad, through the character of a farm boy who leaves his home – and his cat – to become a “city boy”.
Another hot favourite is Switzerland, with Nemo singing The Code.
The 24-year-old non-binary performer draws on their childhood opera singing to pull together an impressive song which scales rap, rock, drum ‘n bass and classical opera.
The message in this one is self-acceptance and the freedom for each one of us to live our lives openly and without fear of judgement.
Switzerland’s Nemo with The Code. Pic: Alma Bengtsson/EBU
Meanwhile, a song that’s been growing in popularity is Ukraine’s Teresa & Maria sung by Alonya Alonya and Jerry Heil.
Alonya, 28, is a well-known rapper in Ukraine, while Heil, 32, found fame on YouTube and appeared on the country’s version of X-Factor.
Utterly hummable, the folk-inflected anti-war song paying tribute to Mother Theresa and the mother of Christ has a strong heritage and shares a songwriter with Kalush Orchestra’s winning 2022 entry Stefania.
Ukraine’s Alyona Alyona & Jerry Heil with Teresa & Maria. Pic: Alma Bengtsson/EBU
In with a chance
Also in the running is Italy with Angelina Mango’s La Noia, which translates as “Boredom”.
The 23-year-old told Italian rock magazine Rockol that while boredom is often seen as a negative thing, she sees it as a time for self-discovery, adding: “Between a life of highs and lows and one of boredom, I will always choose one of highs and lows, but I will always leave myself time for boredom too.”
Italy’s Angelina Mango with La Noia. Pic: Alma Bengtsson/EBU
Meanwhile, Netherlands act Joost has by far the biggest earworm of the crop with Europapa – a song that will delight and infuriate in equal measure. Indeed, one early review of the song proclaimed it was so bad, it had the power to “put you off music forever”.
Despite the silliness of the happy hardcore-infused pop song and the OTT nature of his shoulder-pad-enhanced performance, 26-year-old singer Joost Klein had a heartbreaking inspiration for the song – the loss of both his parents by age 13.
Netherlands act Joost with Europapa. Pic: Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU
The track is about an orphan who travels around Europe trying to find himself, as his father taught him to believe in a Europe without borders, celebrating the national food of each nation en route.
Host country Sweden is also seen as having a chance for back-to-back wins, represented by Norwegian twin brothers Marcus and Martinus Gunnarsen performing their presumptuously titled song Unforgettable.
Sweden’s Marcus & Martinus with Unforgettable. Pic: Alma Bengtsson/EBU
But Eurovision voters – made up equally of public votes and a jury of music experts – will of course be the judge of that.
Other notable mentions include France’s Silmane giving a heartfelt rendition of Mon Amour and Ireland’s Bambie Thug singing Doomsday Blue – a song she’s described as “an electro-metal breakdown”.
France’s Slimane with Mon Amour. Pic: Corinne Cumming/EBU
Ireland’s Bambie Thug with Doomsday Blue. Pic: Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU
What about the UK?
As one of the “Big Five” (the countries that contribute the most to the EBU along with France, Germany, Spain and Italy) the UK is guaranteed a place in the final. Plus, as the host nation, Sweden gets an automatic pass too.
This year the UK are represented by ex-Years And Years star Olly Alexander singing the dance-pop track Dizzy.
Performed in a glass box full of boxers, quirky choreography and a catchy refrain have placed it in the top 10, but we’re unlikely to be contenders for the top spot.
Indeed bookmakers reckon the UK are more likely to come last than nail the top spot.
UK’s Olly Alexander with Dizzy. Pic: Corinne Cumming/EBU
Controversy this year
There have been calls on the European Broadcasting Union EBU to ban Israel from competing in the show, due to their ongoing ground offensive in Gaza.
An apolitical organisation, the EBU has said Israel will remain in the competition.
In comparison to Russia’s removal from the show back in 2022 due to its invasion of Russia, the EBU say Israel’s broadcaster Kan hasn’t broken any rules. They say Moscow was banned for using their broadcasting channels as a tool for political propaganda multiple times.
Israel’s Eden Golan with Hurricane for Israel. Pic: Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU
Normally strong Eurovision contenders, four-time winners Israel is represented by 20-year-old Eden Golan, and ranks in the top 10. But how the public will vote for them in the second semi-final heat on Thursday remains to be seen.
Golan’s song Hurricane was Israel’s third proposed entry after contest bosses rejected their first two songs over lyrics deemed political.
More than 34,000 people have been killed, and over 78,000 have been injured in Gaza since the conflict began, according to Gaza’s Hamas-led health ministry.
Israel retaliated after Hamas fighters killed more than 1,000 Israelis and took hundreds of hostages in attacks on 7 October last year.
Any other songs that have stirred up a fuss?
Spain’s entry, Zorra, by husband and wife act Nebulossa, has drawn controversy because its title can be translated as an anti-female slur.
While it’s been officially translated as “Vixen,” it’s a term used in Spain which would translate in the UK as “Bitch” or “Slut”.
Spain’s Nebulossa with Zorra. Pic: Alma Bengtsson/EBU
Lyrics include: “If I head out solo, I’m a bit of a bitch/ If I’m having fun, I’m the biggest bitch/…When I get what I want (bitch, bitch) /It’s never ’cause I deserve it (bitch, bitch) … Well, she’s been empowering herself, And now she’s a picture-perfect bitch.”
The Feminist Movement of Madrid has called for it to be withdrawn from Eurovision, saying it insults women and is not suitable for a family audience.
Singer Maria Bas has argued her lyrics describe how a woman is referred to as a “zorra” no matter what she does, and that the song highlights society’s double standards, reclaiming a word that is weaponised against women only.
Spain’s prime minister added his twopenneth this week, saying he liked the song and joking about how right-wing critics might have preferred the national anthem used during the Franco dictatorship as Spain’s Eurovision submission.
The hard-right Vox party hit back by saying Pedro Sanchez would prefer to listen to the communist anthem The Internationale.
The Eurovision semi-finals are on Tuesday and Thursday evening, ahead of the grand final on Saturday night.
Sky News will be in Malmo with updates, a live blog, and all the biggest news from the contest as it happens.
Elijah Wood and other Lord Of The Rings cast members have paid tribute to their co-star Bernard Hill, who died on Sunday aged 79.
Hill played King Theoden in the Oscar-winning fantasy franchise directed by Sir Peter Jackson.
Wood, who played Frodo Baggins, said on X: “So long to our friend, our king. We will never forget you.”
He also shared a quote from JRR Tolkien‘s novel, on which the films are based, writing: “For he was a gentle heart and a great king and kept his oaths; and he rose out of the shadows to a last fair morning.”
Dominic Monaghan, who played Merry Brandybuck in the trilogy, wrote: “The Broken king has passed to the grey havens but he will always be remembered. #ripbernard.”
Hill joined the franchise’s cast for the second film in the series, 2002’s The Two Towers, which won two Academy Awards for best sound editing and best visual effects.
He returned to the franchise for 2003’s The Return Of The King, which picked up 11 Oscars, including best picture and best director for Sir Peter.
The actor had been due to attend Comic Con in Liverpool over the weekend but the event announced on Saturday that he had to withdraw at the last minute because of his partner becoming “very ill”.
The post on X added: “He sends his sincere apologies and thanks you all for your understanding.”
Later footage from the event shows Hill’s co-stars paying tribute to him on stage, with Sean Astin, who played Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings, saying: “He was intrepid, he was gruff, he was irascible.”
Billy Boyd, who played Peregrin “Pippin” Took, said: “We were watching the movies and I said to Dom, I don’t think anyone spoke Tolkien’s words as great as Bernard did.”
Lord of the Rings stars (L to R) Sean Astin, Billy Boyd, Bernard Hill and Elijah Wood in 2003. Pic: Reuters
Hill first made a name for himself as Yosser Hughes in Alan Bleasdale’s BBC drama series Boys From The Blackstuff, about five unemployed men, which aired in 1982.
The role earned him a BAFTA TV nomination in 1983, the same year the show picked up the BAFTA for best drama series.
He went on to play Captain Edward Smith in the Oscar-winning 1997 epic Titanic, which starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.
Hill as Captain Edward Smith in Titanic. Pic: Shutterstock
In the 2015 BBC adaptation of the Hilary Mantel novel Wolf Hall – about the court of Henry VIII – he played the Duke of Norfolk, uncle to Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard.
He can currently be seen in the second series of BBC drama The Responder starring Martin Freeman, which began on Sunday night.
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Bernard Hill dies aged 79
Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, described him as an “incredible talent” who “blazed a trail across the screen” during his career.
“From Boys From The Blackstuff, to Wolf Hall, The Responder, and many more, we feel truly honoured to have worked with Bernard at the BBC.
“Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this sad time.”
Hill in Return of the King. Pic: Shutterstock
Actress and singer Barbara Dickson, who starred with him in a musical based on The Beatles, described him as a “marvellous actor”.
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Alongside a picture of them together, she wrote on X: “It’s with great sadness that I note the death of Bernard Hill.
“We worked together in John, Paul, George, Ringo and Bert, (by) Willy Russell marvellous show 1974-1975.
“A really marvellous actor. It was a privilege to have crossed paths with him. RIP Benny x.”
Meanwhile, Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said: “Boys from the Blackstuff was massive in my early life. God love you, Bernard Hill.”
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