Lin-Manuel Miranda Reveals Star-Studded Cast for ‘Octet’ Musical Adaptation

It is finally happening. After all the speculation, Lin-Manuel Miranda officially dropped the bomb on Instagram this Tuesday—he is bringing Dave Malloy’s ‘Octet’ to the big screen. The cast list is honestly wild. We’re talking Amanda Seyfried, Rachel Zegler, Sheryl Lee Ralph, and Jonathan Groff all in one room. It feels like a massive undertaking, but honestly, if anyone can make an a capella musical about internet addiction work as a feature film, it’s probably him.

I can almost smell the stale coffee and basement dust just thinking about the setting; it’s supposed to take place in a church basement with an eight-person support group. It sounds claustrophobic in the best way possible, doesn’t it?

Miranda isn’t doing this alone, though. He’s pulled together a heavy-hitting ensemble. Philipa Soo is on board, which feels like a perfect reunion considering their history, and Gaten Matarazzo is joining the fray too. You’ve also got Tramell Tillman and Paul-Jordan Jansen rounding out the group. Misryoum noted that rehearsals are already underway, so they aren’t wasting any time getting this thing moving. It makes you wonder how long they’ve been sitting on this casting news before letting it out.

This is only the second time Miranda is taking the director’s chair for a feature, his first being the Jonathan Larson adaptation back in 2021. It’s a bit of a shift, but he seems comfortable in this space. Or maybe he’s just diving in headfirst—which seems to be his default mode anyway.

The timing for the cast is pretty interesting too. Zegler is coming off a huge win at the Oliviers for ‘Evita,’ and Groff just wrapped up his run on Broadway. Everyone seems to be in a very musical headspace right now. Wait, I should mention Ralph—having her return to her musical roots after originating Deena in ‘Dreamgirls’ is a huge get for this production. It adds a layer of weight to the whole thing.

Anyway, it’s a big project. Whether it lives up to the original Off-Broadway run remains to be seen, but Misryoum is keeping a close eye on the development as they start filming. I guess we’ll see if the internet addiction angle hits home in the way they’re hoping. It’s a lot of talent for one church basement.