Jon M. Chu isn't concerned about 'In The Heights' performing badly at the box office.
Jon M. Chu isn't worried about 'In The Heights' disappointing at the box office
The 42-year-old filmmaker helmed the musical movie based on Lin-Manuel Miranda's stage production but the flick bombed with audiences – although Jon believes it is irrelevant as the film has provided a launchpad for cast members such as Anthony Ramos.
He told The Hollywood Reporter: "We can't control who shows up, but we can control the art that we make and what we're trying to put on that screen, especially in a time when we're resetting what stories should look like.
"I wish more people saw it because I thought it could have been such a breakthrough moment for Latinx actors in the way 'Crazy Rich Asians' broke open that cast."
Jon continued: "But then again, our cast did break open. Anthony Ramos is the lead of 'Transformers'. I know that would not have happened without this movie.
"Leslie Grace is Batgirl. Corey Hawkins is in 'The Color Purple'. You have Melissa Barrera in 'Scream 5'. Stephanie Beatriz in 'Encanto'. So much has come from this movie – people may not have been connecting the dots, but that is incredible."
Jon admits that the achievement of making a movie with a completely Latinx cast was underappreciated by observers.
The 'G.I. Joe: Retaliation' director said: "I feel like we didn't fully get to celebrate how amazing the accomplishment of making a movie with an all-Latinx cast in a musical backed by a giant studio was, whereas Latinx characters usually only get 4.6 per cent of the dialogue in the movie – that's crazy to me.
"And it was about joy. No guns, no fighting, no drugs, no enemies."
Tagged in Stephanie Beatriz Lin-Manuel Miranda