For Hamilton fans, the long awaited day has come. Disney Plus subscribers can watch the Hamilton movie starting July 3rd, 2020, at 3 a.m.
Broadway shows have been canceled for the rest of 2020, sports are on hold, live music is almost non-existent, and new movie releases, in any setting, are hard to come by. So the release of the Hamilton movie is a bright light in an otherwise dim season for entertainment.
The July 3rd release is 15 months before the previously announced theater release of October, 2021.
The movie is directed by Thomas Kail, and stars the original Broadway cast.
The date of the streaming release is no accident, as the musical depicts Independence Day (July 4th), through the story of the life and death of the nation’s first secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton.
The cast of the Hamilton film:
- Lin-Manuel Miranda as Alexander Hamilton
- Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr
- Phillipa Soo as Eliza Hamilton
- Renée Elise Goldsberry as Angelica Schuyler
- Christopher Jackson as George Washington
- Daveed Diggs as Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson
- Okieriete Onaodowan as Hercules Mulligan and James Madison
- Anthony Ramos as John Laurens and Philip Hamilton
- Jasmine Cephas Jones as Peggy Schuyler and Maria Reynolds
- Jonathan Groff as King George III
How did they shoot the Hamilton movie?
The movie was shot over three days, during the original Broadway run. According to the New York Times, the director of photography spent two months watching performances and reading the script, to figure out the best camera angles, and ended up installing nine cameras around the Richard Rodgers Theater.
One camera had a view toward the audience through a hole cut in the back of the stage set, one was attached to the balcony rail for a wide shot of the stage, and seven more were hidden behind drapes.
Sound was recorded through more than 100 microphones.
The producers shot a Sunday matinee and a Tuesday evening show, and in between those shows, the cast ran through 13 of the 46 numbers with on-stage equipment to get close-ups and overheads.
So, what you’ll see is a combination of two live performances in front of audiences, and some staged performances without audiences.
How can you watch the Hamilton movie?
The Hamilton movie is streaming on Disney Plus.
In order to watch, you’ll need a subscription to Disney Plus, and, predictably, they’ve suspended the 7-day free trial.
The streaming service costs $6.99 per month or $69.99 per year (which is a savings of 16% over paying monthly).
Disney Plus is an on-demand, ad-free, streaming service that features a huge collection of movies and TV shows from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, the Star Wars franchise, National Geographic, and 20th Century Fox.
So you might find much more that you will enjoy watching. But if not, you can cancel your subscription and you’ll have paid just $6.99, which is a bargain, even if you watch nothing but the Hamilton movie.
Verizon Wireless customers can watch for free — if they have the unlimited plan
If you’re a Verizon Wireless customer with the Unlimited plan, or if you switch to Fios or 5G home Internet, you can get a year of Disney Plus for free.
After the first year, you’ll pay $6.99 a month to continue the service. It will auto-renew on your Verizon bill unless you cancel.
If you already bought a subscription to Disney Plus, you can still take advantage of this free year. Just sign up for it — your existing subscription will be paused and will resume after the free year.
Details here — be sure you read the fine print.
Hamilton in Durham
Hamilton is scheduled for Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC) from December 30th, 2020, to January 24th, 2021.
Stay tuned to see what our public health situation is at that point. Let’s hope that the show goes on!
Official Hamilton Movie Trailer
