Warner Bros. has released the first trailer for Jon M. Chu's adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical In The Heights. The story takes place in Washington Heights and follows bodega owner Usnavi (Anthony Ramos) who provides a window into this close-knit community and dreams about pursuing a better life.

I got to see the trailer last night at a special event in New York City, but even removed from the energy at the event itself where the cast, Miranda, and Chu were in attendance, the trailer just really floored me. I love the use of color here and Alice Brooks' cinematography is just stunning. When you combine the look of the film with how it's embracing diversity and representation, you could have a film that's really special. Based on the trailer, In the Heights just shot up to one of my most-anticipated movies of 2020.

At the event, we got to hear a bunch of stories about bringing the film to the screen and what it meant to the actors involved, but the story that stuck with me came from Ramos. He talked about being a struggling actor on the verge of giving up, and his college was giving away tickets to In the Heights. He took one and went alone, and the musical changed his life because it not only inspired him to keep following his dreams, but he was seeing the people he knew and grew up with on stage. I hope the movie will have the same effect.

Check out the In the Heights trailer below. The film opens June 26, 2020 and stars Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barerra, Olga Merediz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Gregory Diaz IV, Stephanie Beatriz, Dascha Polanco, and Jimmy Smits.

Here's the official synopsis for In the Heights:

The creator of “Hamilton” and the director of “Crazy Rich Asians” invite you to the event of the summer, where the streets are made of music and little dreams become big... “In the Heights.”

 

Lights up on Washington Heights...The scent of a cafecito caliente hangs in the air just outside of the 181st Street subway stop, where a kaleidoscope of dreams rallies this vibrant and tight-knit community.  At the intersection of it all is the likeable, magnetic bodega owner Usnavi (Anthony Ramos), who saves every penny from his daily grind as he hopes, imagines and sings about a better life.

 

“In the Heights” fuses Lin-Manuel Miranda’s kinetic music and lyrics with director John M. Chu’s lively and authentic eye for storytelling to capture a world very much of its place, but universal in its experience.