Oftentimes, when a Broadway show receives critical acclaim or does impressive numbers at the box office, film producers will look to adapt the story for the big screen in order to bring it to a wider audience. Hamilton, one of the most successful and revered Broadway musicals of all time, is a great example of this, as a filmed version was released on the streaming platform Disney+ and its creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda, intends to one day develop it into a non-stagebound film. Rent, The Phantom of the Opera, Chicago, Fiddler on the Roof, and Jersey Boys are among the other renowned shows that have been adapted for the big screen.
While musicals have been the source material for several films, the reverse is also true. Many films, including the five listed below, have inspired successful Broadway shows.
Mean Girls
Mean Girls, a teen comedy written by Saturday Night Live alumnus Tina Fey and directed by Mark Waters, is a revenge story that depicts the harsh realities of bullying and social cliques and how both impact teenagers and their mental health. In the film, Lindsay Lohan starred as Cady Heron, a new student in a US high school who was previously homeschooled in Africa. Rachel McAdams plays antagonist Regina George, the leader of the Plastics clique. The incredibly quotable film made more than $130 million at the box office, won several awards, and was lauded by critic Roger Ebert as a “smart and funny” film “in a wasteland of dumb movies about teenagers.”
The musical, which premiered at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C. on October 31, 2017, opened on Broadway on April 8, 2018, and ran for 833 performances. It’s expected to be shown in London’s West End in June 2024. Sabrina Carpenter and Reneé Rapp played the lead roles of Cady and Regina, respectively. Rapp reprised the role of Regina in the 2024 film remake of Mean Girls.
The Notebook
The Notebook, another 2004 film that starred McAdams, was also developed for the stage, with its first production showing at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater in September 2022. The musical, written by Bekah Brunstetter (book) and Ingrid Michaelson (music and lyrics), debuted on Broadway at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre on March 14, 2024. Schele Williams and Michael Greif directed the musical. Both the film and the musical were based on Nicholas Sparks’ bestselling novel.
In the film, James Garner plays Noah Calhoun, an elderly man who is recounting a decades-long love story to a female nursing home patient. It’s eventually revealed that the patient is his wife Allie, who is suffering from dementia. Ryan Gosling and McAdams play the younger versions of the characters. The film made $117.8 million at the box office and won eight Teen Choice Awards.
The Devil Wears Prada
A critically-acclaimed film that made more than $326.7 million at the box office, The Devil Wears Prada, based on the book by Lauren Weisberger, tells the story of an aspiring journalist working under the cruel editor-in-chief of the fashion magazine Runway. Anne Hathaway played journalist Andy Sachs, while record 21-time Academy Award nominee Meryl Streep played editor Miranda Priestly. The film received a pair of Academy Award nominations and Streep won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.
The Devil Wears Prada musical, written by Kate Wetherhead (book), Elton John (music), and Shania Taub (lyrics), debuted at the Steppenwolf Theater Company in Chicago in July 2022 and is scheduled to be shown at the Dominion Theatre in London’s West End in October 2024. A Broadway show has been announced with dates yet to be determined.
Back to the Future
Following a five-year delay, the musical adaptation of Back to the Future, a 1985 science fiction film starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd, debuted at the Manchester Opera House in February 2020. The musical then transferred to the Adelphi Theatre in London’s West End and, in 2022, won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical. It opened on Broadway on August 3, 2023, and is scheduled to tour North America in 2024 and be shown in Tokyo, Japan in 2025.
The musical, written by Bob Gale (book), Alan Silvestri (music), and Glen Ballard (lyrics), features several songs from the original film, including “Johnny B. Goode” and “The Power of Love.”
Mrs. Doubtfire
Mrs. Doubtfire, a 1993 film starring Robin Williams as an unemployed actor who disguises himself as a Scottish nanny to maintain an active role in his kids’ lives after a divorce from their mother, debuted on Broadway in March 2020 just before the pandemic. It reopened in December 2021 and ran for 83 performances before moving to the Manchester Opera House. Rob McClure played the titular role on Broadway and for its North American tour, while Gabriel Vick played the character in Manchester and London. McClure was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical.