In the Heights star Melissa Barrera looks back on the musical's box office woes and shares that the reception felt very personal. In June 2021, Warner Bros. finally released the eagerly-anticipated movie adaptation of In the Heights, the first Broadway musical from Hamilton sensation Lin-Manuel Miranda. The Jon M. Chu-directed movie went into its opening weekend bolstered by glowing reviews, Miranda's name, and the success of the original stage show. In the Heights seemed, to many, to be poised for success at the box office.
Unfortunately, the opposite happened. In the Heights opened to a mere $11.5 million, much lower than initial estimates and a disappointing start for a summer release. Though musicals can often demonstrate long legs at the box office, the movie topped out at $29.9 million domestically and $43.6 million globally. Almost immediately, experts began pointing fingers at the different reasons why In the Heights stumbled. From its dual HBO Max release to a colorism controversy that emerged, it seemed there were a few contributing factors.
Barrera, who played aspiring fashion designer Vanessa, hasn't worked it out herself. Speaking to THR for the release of hew new film Scream, Barrera got candid about In the Heights' low numbers. "It’s such a weird time that we’re living in, and what happened with In the Heights wasn’t our fault," she said before stating she's learned not to have any expectations. Instead, Barrera simply hopes the theatrical experience can continue to live on. As for her personal feelings on the matter, the actress said she never feels good about low grosses because "that becomes the defining factor of whether a movie is good or not." In the Heights really affected her, as Barrera then explained:
I just thought that it was so unfair what happened with In the Heights. All the headlines that started coming out after we premiered were so brutal and horrible, and they felt very personal to me. It just felt like the industry was blaming us for not doing well and was blaming the fact that we were all Latinos and was blaming the fact that it was a musical that not a lot of people knew. So it just felt very personal, and I remember feeling very shitty afterwards. I was in quarantine in Vancouver because I was about to shoot another show, so I was literally sitting on a couch and reading everything. So it was awful, and it was probably one of the worst feelings I’ve ever felt. I don’t wish that on anyone.
It's hard not to get disappointed over a movie like In the Heights flopping. As a Latino-led film, it was a special moment for representation on the big screen, and it pushed the limits of what a movie musical could be. In the Heights deserved to be seen by more people, but there's no explaining just why it failed to resonate with audiences. In addition to the reasons mentioned above, it's worth mentioning that several musicals struggled at the box office in 2021; despite finding much success on stage, Dear Evan Hansen and West Side Story both posted low numbers.
Hearing Barrera's own regret over how In the Heights performed offers a unique look at how creatives respond to flops. It can't feel good to have worked on a film for so long, only to see it be largely ignored by audiences. With In the Heights now available again on HBO Max, perhaps it will find new life there as so many movies do these days. It might even be enough to erase the current narrative surrounding the film, which largely involves its box office performance. That would be happier ending for In the Heights than what it has right now.
Source: THR