Ben Platt is playing the role that made him uber-famous one more time, fortunately for us. Universal Pictures drops the official trailer for the film adaptation for Dear Evan Hansen, the moving stage musical that promises ‘you will be found.’ From Vanity Fair:
The story centers on a kid whose therapist has given him the assignment of writing letters to himself, addressing his fears, hopes, and insecurities.
A classmate named Connor Murphy (Colton Ryan, who understudied the role on Broadway) steals one of the letters and later takes his own life. That boy’s parents (played in the film by Amy Adams and Danny Pino) mistake the letter Evan wrote for their son’s final words, addressed to a kid they assume was his close friend. Evan lets them believe this because he thinks it brings them comfort—but the confusion and lies soon pile up, leading to greater heartbreak.
The Broadway production scored 5 Tony Awards including Best Musical and a Best Actor in a Musical statue for Platt. Folks on social media are making light of 27-year-old Platt playing a high school student, but come on folks – suspend your disbelief a bit and just enjoy. The movie hits theaters September 24.
L-R Bette Midler, Ben Platt, Judith Light in ‘The Politician’ The gloves come off, and the claws are out. Get ready for the spiciest and most iconic election battle in NYC history. Netflix’s The Politician returns June 19. Check out the trailer for Season 2 of Ryan Murphy’s The Politician, pitting Ben Platt against Judith Light and Bette Midler as he attempts his next run for office. The new season time jumps three years ahead from the end of Season One where our hero, Payton Hobart (Ben Platt), is now in his third year at Colombia University and has set his sights on unseating New York State Sen. Dede Standish (Judith Light), a longtime incumbent and currently serving as the Senate Majority Leader. Bette Midler is along for the ride as Standish’s no-nonsense Chief of Staff, Hadassah Gold, who promises her boss, “We’re destroying him – you’ll thank me later.”
Standish’s reelection was supposed to be easy until Hobart jumped in the race. All of this is part of Hobart’s master plan to eventually become president of the United States, a goal he’s held since he was seven-years-old. The series also stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Zoey Deutsch, Lucy Boynton, Laura Dreyfuss, Theo Germaine, David Corenswet, and Ryan Haddad. The always dependable Jackie Hoffman joins the cast for Season 2. The trailer moves at warp-speed dropping morsels of plot points including Hobart obtaining proof that Standish was in a throuple, campaigns bugging the other camps, and team members turning ‘double agents.’ And then there’s Midler demanding a staffer quickly purchase some “spicy lube.” The entire 8-episode season drops Friday, June 19, on Netflix. Judith Light in ‘The Politician’ (screen capture)
(image via Instagram) Netflix has dropped the trailer for the upcoming ‘Ben Platt Live From Radio City Music Hall‘ scheduled to debut on the streaming platform May 20. The concert (filmed on September 29, 2019) included tracks from the Tony Award winner’s debut solo album, Sing to Me Instead, as well as selections from a very personal songbook. In the trailer, Platt shares with the audience, “I’m a very anxious person, so I live very much in my head. I have a really hard time being present where I am, and one of the most special ways for me to do that is music.” “The greatest gift of music is it’s something that can really bring people together,” says the Dear Evan Hansen star. “It can help you see someone in a way that you don’t expect to, and see someone’s perspective.”
Hey, folks. I usually end the day with my News Round-Ups, but this feels a little better tonight. Tonight, The Late Late Show with James Corden closed with Tony Award-winner Ben Platt joined by members of the Broadway and touring companies of the smash musical Dear Even Hansen singing, appropriately, “You Will Be Found.” This feels like a better note to end the night. Thanks for reading TRR folks. Have a great night. (and wash your hands…) …signed, human being, me…
(image via Instagram) Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: When you look like Brazilian tourism expert Kiko Riaze (above), I’ll FIND something in my house that needs to be painted. Follow Riaze on Instagram here. • HuffPost: L.A. Law star Harry Hamlin said he’s proud of his role in the groundbreaking 1982 gay flick Making Love but believes the film was ahead of its time. “It was like 10 years too early and it completely ended my career. That was the last studio picture I ever did. The door shut with a resounding smash.” • The Advocate: A month after the Hallmark Channel’s dust-up with LGBTQ people over removing an ad for Zola wedding planning that featured a lesbian wedding, the company’s president and CEO, Bill Abbott, has stepped down. • Out Music: The Pet Shop Boys new album Hotspot drops tomorrow, January 24, and in advance of that release we get to step behind the velvet rope for their new single “Monkey Business.“ Set in a sexy nightclub and featuring a wild bunch of characters who eventually end up in a champagne fight, the tribe bust their best moves on a dance floor straight out of Saturday Night Fever.
• New York Times: Despite their fiery history on the debate stage, Sen. Kamala Harris of California is considering endorsing former Vice President Joe Biden for the Democratic nominee for president. Great – then he can pick her for veep duties and they’ll win. • BroadwayWorld: In a tribute to longtime GRAMMY executive producer Ken Ehrlich, and to acknowledge the importance of music education in schools to the Recording Academy, GRAMMY Museum® and Ehrlich, artists associated with Ehrlich’s 40-year career will gather to perform “I Sing The Body Electric” from the film Fame. The performance will feature current nominees Camila Cabello, Gary Clark Jr. and John Legend joined by Debbie Allen, Joshua Bell, Common, Misty Copeland, Lang Lang, Cyndi Lauper, Ben Platt, and The War And Treaty. • People: Did Prince Charles diss Vice President Mike Pence as he made his way down an assembly line of world leaders at the World Holocaust Forum?
OHMYGOD, I just figured out how to play Spotify on my TV! I’ve been listening to myself all day so I can earn some extra cash. I think I’m up to 78 cents! 😂
my much anticipated rankings for the 11 Star Wars films:
1) sunday in the park w george 2) company 3) into the woods 4) sweeney todd 5) merrily we roll along 6) a little night music 7) follies 8) assassins 9) forum 10) i’ve never seen a Star Wars film 11) passion — Ben Platt (@BenSPLATT) December 20, 2019
“Cats” should not be seen by small children or people who are high.
And then there was this exchange between woofy Pennsylvania state Rep. Brian Sims and out recording artist Bright Light Bright Light that made my morning:
And if any of them cosplay as X-Men for some reason today I decided which song each mutant should lip sync to after watching an X-Man musical. You’re welcome.
Storm does an ‘it’s Raining (X) Men’ / ‘Rain’ / ‘I Can’t Stand The Rain’ medley and Jean Grey does ‘Genie In A Bottle’ with very aggressive literal interpretive dance that kicks off when she goes full Phoenix.
And while we’re on the subject of Bright Light Bright Light, check out his synth-pop version of the holiday classic, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,” released in 2017.
The nominations for the 77th Golden Globe Awards were announced this morning, and Billy Porter received a nod for his star turn as Pray Tell in the groundbreaking FX series, Pose. Porter was nominated for the same role last year but lost the trophy to Bodyguard’s Richard Madden. He may have lost out on the GG, but he did take home the 2019 Primetime Emmy Award for ‘Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series,’ becoming the first openly gay black man to be nominated and win in any lead acting category at the Primetime Emmys.
Porter also received a nomination for Best Actor in a Drama Series from the Critic’s Choice Awards over the weekend. Pose picked up additional noms in the Best Drama Series and Best Actress in a Drama Series (MJ Rodriguez). Plus, TV Guide declared Porter’s turn on Pose as the #1 performance on television this year. Other LGBTQ-centric nominations for the 2020 Golden Globes include Taron Egerton for the Elton John musical fantasy biopic Rocketman, Ben Platt’s ambitious high school student in Netflix’s The Politician, and Jodie Comer homicidal Russian assassin in the BBC’s Killing Eve. For those who like to count, the Hollywood Reporter writes that Marriage Story leads the film nominees with six nominations, followed by The Irishman and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood with five nods each. Joker and The Two Popes scored four noms each.
On the television side, Chernobyl, The Crown and Unbelievable received four nominations, while Barry, Big Little Lies, Fleabag, Fosse/Verdon, The Kominsky Method, The Morning Show and Succession all garnered three nominations each.
Don’t miss the 77th annual Golden Globes on January 5, 2020, with host Ricky Gervais. You can find the full list of nominees below: Best Motion Picture — Drama 1917 The Irishman Joker Marriage Story The Two PopesBest Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy Dolemite Is My Name Jojo Rabbit Knives Out Once Upon a Time in Hollywood RocketmanBest Foreign-Language Motion Picture The Farewell Les Misérables Pain and Glory Parasite Portrait of a Lady on FireBest Limited Series or TV Movie Catch-22 Chernobyl Fosse/Verdon The Loudest Voice UnbelievableBest Television Series — Drama Big Little Lies The Crown Killing Eve The Morning Show SuccessionBest Comedy Series Fleabag Barry The Kominsky Method The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel The PoliticianBest Motion Picture — Animated Frozen II How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World Missing Link Toy Story 4 The Lion KingBest Director — Motion Picture Bong Joon-ho, Parasite Sam Mendes, 1917 Todd Phillips, Joker Martin Scorsese, The Irishman Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in HollywoodBest Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Christopher Abbott, Catch-22 Sacha Baron Cohen, The Spy Russell Crowe, The Loudest Voice Jared Harris, Chernobyl Sam Rockwell, Fosse/VerdonBest Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Kaitlyn Dever, Unbelievable Joey King, The Act Helen Mirren, Catherine the Great Merritt Wever, Unbelievable Michelle Williams, Fosse/VerdonBest Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Series, Limited Series, or TV Movie Alan Arkin, The Kominsky Method Kieran Culkin, Succession Andrew Scott, Fleabag Stellan Skarsgård, Chernobyl Henry Winkler, BarryBest Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Series, Limited Series, or TV Movie Patricia Arquette, The Act Helena Bonham Carter, The Crown Toni Collette, Unbelievable Meryl Streep, Big Little Lies Emily Watson, ChernobylBest Score for a Motion Picture Little Women Joker Marriage Story 1917 Motherless BrooklynBest Original Song “Beautiful Ghosts,” Cats “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again,” Rocketman “Into the Unknown,” Frozen II “Spirit,” The Lion King “Stand Up,” HarrietBest Performance by an Actor in a Comedy Series Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method Bill Hader, Barry Ben Platt, The Politician Paul Rudd, Living With Yourself Ramy Youssef, RamyBest Performance by an Actress in a Comedy Series Christina Applegate, Dead to Me Kirsten Dunst, On Becoming a God in Central Florida Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Natasha Lyonne, Russian Doll Phoebe Waller-Bridge, FleabagBest Performance by an Actor in a Drama Series Brian Cox, Succession Kit Harington, Game of Thrones Rami Malek, Mr. Robot Tobias Menzies, The Crown Billy Porter, PoseBest Performance by an Actress in a Drama Series Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show Jodie Comer, Killing Eve Olivia Colman, The Crown Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies Reese Witherspoon, The Morning ShowBest Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Motion PictureTom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes Al Pacino, The Irishman Joe Pesci, The Irishman Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in HollywoodBest Screenplay Marriage Story Parasite The Two Popes Once Upon a Time in Hollywood The IrishmanBest Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell Annette Bening, The Report Laura Dern, Marriage Story Jennifer Lopez, Hustlers Margot Robbie, BombshellBest Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy Daniel Craig, Knives Out Taron Egerton, Rocketman Roman Griffin Davis, Jojo Rabbit Eddie Murphy, Dolemite Is My Name Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in HollywoodBest Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture — Drama Christian Bale, Ford v Ferrari Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory Adam Driver, Marriage Story Joaquin Phoenix, Joker Jonathan Pryce, The Two PopesBest Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy Ana de Armas, Knives Out Cate Blanchett, Where’d You Go, Bernadette Beanie Feldstein, Booksmart Emma Thompson, Late Night Awkwafina, The FarewellBest Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture — Drama Cynthia Erivo, Harriet Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story Saoirse Ronan, Little Women Charlize Theron, Bombshell Renée Zellweger, Judy
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Some days you just want to ride a big pink thing. Just ask Eliad Cohen (above)…LOL • Bloomberg: The state of Michigan has approved a charter for the first-ever LGBTQ credit union set to open in 2020. • KIT212: Happy Hump Day! You know what that means over at kenneth-in-the-212… Wrestle Wednesday! • HuffPost: Talk about underhanded politics… After promising there would be no votes until Wednesday afternoon out of respect for 9/11, North Carolina GOP lawmakers in the state House took advantage of Democrats attending memorial ceremonies to push through an override of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of the state budget.
Rep. Deb Butler of North Carolina slammed Republicans for overturning a veto while Democrats were at a 9/11 ceremony.
• Washington Post: The Supreme Court has ruled the Trump administration’s policy to bar many Central American migrants from seeking asylum in the United States may go into effect while legal challenges move forward. Since 1980, the U.S. has said those who say they are fleeing persecution and violence in their home countries have the right to at least apply for asylum. • NY Times: The White House was directly involved in pressing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to denounce the weather forecasters who contradicted Donald Trump’s claim that Hurricane Dorian would probably strike Alabama. Mick Mulvaney, acting White House chief of staff, told Wilbur Ross, the commerce secretary, to have NOAA publicly disavow the forecasters’ position that Alabama was not at risk. • New Music: Tony Award winner drops his newest music video, the uptempo, pulsating “Rain,” from his album Sing To Me Instead. Platt’s upcoming September 29 concert at Radio City Music Hall is not only sold-out (huge place, don’t you know?) but it will be filmed for a future Netflix music special. And of course, there’s the upcoming Netflix series The Politician, by Ryan Murphy, which he stars in alongside Jessica Lange, Gwenyth Paltrow, and his Dear Evan Hansen co-star Laura Dreyfuss.
Check out the latest from producer Ryan Murphy, who gave us Glee, American Horror Story, and Pose – thenew original comedy series, The Politician.
Payton Hobart, played by Tony Award winner Ben Platt (Dear Evan Hansen), is a wealthy student from Santa Barbara, California, who’s known since age seven that he’s going to be the President of the United States.
But before he can get to the White House, he’ll have to navigate the most treacherous political landscape of all: Saint Sebastian High School.
The longterm plan is: get elected Student Body President, get into Harvard, and no matter what – keep his eye on that Oval Office prize.
But first, Payton will have to outmaneuver his cold-blooded, cunning classmates without sacrificing his own morality and carefully crafted image.
Even his mother, played by Oscar-winner Gywneth Paltrow, admits to Payton, “Your ambition frightens me.”
The sly, satirical dark comedy offers a rare glimpse into just what it takes to make a politician.
The trailer is a fast-paced affair and includes a same-sex kiss for Platt – so don’t blink.
Bette Midler recently announced on Twitter that she and LGBTQ ally Judith Light have also joined the cast.
It’s worth hitting the play button just to see Jessica Lange wonder why calling a gay man a ‘butt-muncher’ would be a scandal: “It’s what gays do – munch butt and celebrate Halloween…”
• Here’s a t-shirt (modeled by InstaHunk Ramses Principe) that I can totally relate to 😉
• The governor of Utah has signed into law the state’s new, tougher hate crimes law with stricter punishments for those who commit crimes specifically due to bias. Yes – Utah!
• Even though Netflix cancelled the terrific One Day at a Time reboot, the streaming giant may be standing in the show’s way of finding a new home.
• Starting out at a bus stop as young boys, James Corden and Tony Award winner Ben Platt tell the story of a life-long friendship using 9 different sets and 12 carefully curated songs all captured in one take.
• Investigators on Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team say the four page letter by Attorney General William Barr didn’t adequately portray the findings of their investigation.
• Donald Trump’s choices for ambassadorships has been, interesting, to say the least. Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates — a wealthy real estate developer with no diplomatic experience. Ambassador to Morocco? A well-heeled car dealer. For Iceland? While well-traveled, the nominee had never even been to the Nordic country.
• The brilliant satirist, Randy Rainbow, offers his parody of the Disney classic, “Cruella DeVille,” with a nod to our current clueless Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.
Ben Platt is playing the role that made him uber-famous one more time, fortunately for us. Universal Pictures drops the official trailer for the film adaptation for Dear Evan Hansen, the moving stage musical that promises ‘you will be found.’ From Vanity Fair: 
