Vanessa Hudgens has done a little of everything in the musical department. She got her big break with High School Musical, made her Broadway debut with Gigi, starred in Fox’s live broadcast of Grease as Rizzo, and so much more. But even with all that experience, one of her latest projects came with a unique challenge; Hudgens filmed Lin-Manuel Miranda’s feature directorial debut, an adaptation of Jonathan Larson’s Tick, Tick... Boom!, during the pandemic.
The musical is an autobiographical piece that follows Andrew Garfield's Jon. He’s an aspiring theater composer who’s working at a diner while writing an original rock musical he can’t quite crack. Jon’s also struggling with the fact that his 30th birthday is fast approaching and he's feeling like he hasn’t made something of himself yet -- or the time he has.
While on Collider Ladies Night for the release of Netflix’s My Little Pony: A New Generation, Hudgens took a moment to revisit filming Tick, Tick… Boom! Here’s what she said when ask how that experience compared to her previous stage and screen musical work:
“It was tough because we shot it in the middle of the pandemic. That is something that you don’t really expect. And it was definitely a bummer at times because we had so many moments where we’d be setting up a shot and Lin was like, ‘Ya know, if we could, we would all be taking turns singing songs and jamming out right now, but we can’t because of restrictions and rules and trying to be safe.’ But, I’m just such a big Jonathan Larson fan and it’s just a special, special project because audiences are gonna be able to hear songs that they probably never heard before, and just really get a glimpse into Jonathan’s mind. Andrew did such a fantastic job portraying him.”
Tick, Tick… Boom! is set to hit Netflix on November 19th. The movie also stars Alexandra Shipp, Robin de Jesús, Joshua Henry, MJ Rodriguez, Bradley Whitford, Tariq Trotter and Judith Light.
If you’re looking for more from Hudgens while we wait for Tick, Tick… Boom!’s release, be sure to check out our full Collider Ladies Night conversation in podcast form below: