Aaron Sorkin is one of Hollywood’s most popular writers. His dialogue is fast and memorable, and his characters jump off the page. Now, he’s just come off winning a Golden Globe for his movie “The Trial of the Chicago 7.” The Academy also nominated Sorkin and the film for Oscars.
Sorkin will tell you himself, he’s “an accidental screenwriter” and he’s actually a “playwright who fakes his way through movies and television shows.” Those familiar with his work may not be surprised. “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” especially, feels theatrical.
But not only does “The Trial of the Chicago 7” feel like a play, it could’ve been a musical. Sorkin told Variety, “I knew in my heart that this, actually, with the right composer and lyricist, can be a great musical.”
Some may squirm at this idea. But I’m really here for it. Imagine Frank Langella’s Judge Hoffman tap dancing behind the bench. And we already know Eddie Redmayne has got what it takes from his work as Marius in Les Misérables. But don’t even get me started on how great his Les Mis co-star Sacha Baron Cohen’s 11 o’clock number would be. And we just know he would get the 11 o’clock number.
While this didn’t turn out to be a musical, other famous content from 2020 may be. A little over a week ago, it was announced that Netflix’s hit miniseries, “The Queen’s Gambit” is getting the musical treatment. I am interested to see how they are going to theatricalize chess, which is usually quite small. As long as they also theatricalize Anya Taylor-Joy’s chess stare down.
And if there aren’t dancing chess pieces, I’m walking out.
You can watch “The Trial of the Chicago 7” on Netflix right now. And stay tuned for the Oscars on April 25th to see if Aaron Sorkin can take home the award for Original Screenplay.
