Lin-Manuel Miranda Actually Wished To Play One Depraved Character

Songwriter and Tony Award-winner Lin-Manuel Miranda actually, actually needed to look in Jon M. Chu’s current “Depraved” adaptation — however I guess you may by no means guess which function he was gunning for.

Throughout an look on “The Late Present with Stephen Colbert” in February 2025, Miranda, the person behind Broadway hits like “Hamilton” and big cinematic songs like “We Do not Discuss About Bruno” from “Encanto” revealed that he mainly begged Chu for a selected and extremely small function within the adaptation of Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman’s acclaimed Broadway musical. “Within the opening variety of the present, this one munchkin runs out and goes, ‘Is it true you have been her pal?'” Miranda advised Colbert. “As a result of, man, I do not know if you happen to’ve seen a dwell manufacturing of ‘Depraved,’ however typically they actually put some sauce on the ball after they ship that line. It is the place the story begins. So I used to be like, ‘I actually needed to try this line, Jon.’ And I used to be not forged.”

After acknowledging that his casting would have been “distracting” (which might be an understatement), Miranda graciously praised Kirsty Anne Shaw, who’s credited as “Skeptical Munchkin” and delivers the road to Glinda the Good Witch, who’s performed by Oscar nominee Ariana Grande-Butera. “And the younger girl who does it within the film is nice,” Miranda mentioned. “She does it very earnestly — I’d have achieved very Regina George, ‘Imply Ladies,’ like, ‘Is it true you have been her pal!?’ Did not make the reduce!” So wait — why did Miranda really feel daring sufficient to ask Chu for this function? 

Very like Glinda the Good Witch and Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), the “villainous” Depraved Witch of the West, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jon M. Chu are buddies (although, not like Glinda and Elphaba, it is not any type of secret). Chu, who’s additionally recognized for his blockbuster adaptation of the hit novel “Loopy Wealthy Asians,” directed “Within the Heights” in 2021, bringing Miranda’s first Tony Award-winning musical to the large display. Although the discharge of “Within the Heights” was undeniably impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic — which mainly ensured that it did not fairly click on on the field workplace — Chu does an exceptional job adapting this joyful, dense musical, and although he later advised Miranda he could not be in “Depraved,” he did let Miranda play a small function within the film musical he wrote. 

With Anthony Ramos (an unique “Hamilton” forged member from Broadway) within the lead function of Javi, which was originated by Miranda himself onstage, Chu recreates the story fantastically … and partway via the movie, Miranda seems as a Washington Heights piragüero (piragüeros promote shaved ice desserts) who’s dropping enterprise to different distributors, like Mr. Softee vans. (He even will get a little bit tune, “Piragua.”) For those who hold watching after the film’s credit, Miranda reappears to rejoice the truth that the Mr. Softee truck has damaged down in “Piragua (Reprise),” and guess who performs the Mr. Softee driver? That will be Christopher Jackson, who originated the function of Benny within the Broadway manufacturing of “Within the Heights” and went on to play George Washington in “Hamilton.”

Let’s return to “Hamilton” for one second, although, as a result of that is most likely the place you have seen Lin-Manuel Miranda earlier than. After “Within the Heights” gained a Tony for Greatest Musical in 2008 (amongst many, many different awards), Miranda confirmed up on the White Home beneath President Barack Obama for the “Night of Poetry, Music, and the Spoken Phrase” in Could 2009 and carried out a rap tune about … founding father Alexander Hamilton. Although the viewers chuckled when he introduced the efficiency, individuals stopped laughing fairly rapidly as soon as he began singing, and that quantity turned the opening and title monitor of “Hamilton.” The remainder is historical past; “Hamilton” additionally gained the Tony for Greatest Musical (in 2016) and have become one of many largest cultural sensations of its period. (Whether or not or not it is aged effectively because the political local weather modified is unquestionably debatable, however I am unafraid to confess that the songs are complete bangers.)

Since then, Miranda has penned large songs for films like “Moana” (he wrote “How Far I am going to Go”), “Encanto” (together with the aforementioned large hit “We Do not Discuss About Bruno”), and the live-action remake of “The Little Mermaid” and the prequel “Mufasa: The Lion King.” He additionally appeared alongside Emily Blunt within the film musical “Mary Poppins Returns” in 2018 and directed the difference of Jonathan Larson’s pre-“Lease” musical “Tick, Tick… Increase!” in 2021, which stars Andrew Garfield because the late author. A professionally shot model of “Hamilton” is accessible to look at on Disney+, “Within the Heights” is accessible to stream on Max, and “Tick, Tick…Increase!” is on Netflix — if it’s worthwhile to atone for Miranda’s physique of labor.