Entertainment
Lin-Manuel Miranda Looks Forward On 'Game Changers' Special
At this point, it feels like everyone knows the basics of the story behind Hamilton: Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator and former star of the musical, took a big historical biography on vacation and came back with an idea for a mixtape that would, years later, turn into a pop culture juggernaut that peaked in mid-2016 with a huge win at the Tony Awards. But in ABC's Game Changers special, he took Robin Roberts on a Washington Heights tour while being honored for his fantastic year, and he got the chance to look forward instead of back, even mentioning a little bit about his future plans. And don't get disappointed, but Lin-Manuel Miranda's next musical won't necessarily be historical.
While he still seems a little stunned by just how successful the musical has become, at this point, he's ready to look forward. And he doesn't want to upset his fans, but Miranda explains, he's not going to be following things up with Hamilton II: The Jefferson Years. He's just not a history nerd, he says, and so his next musical will probably have nothing to do with American history. And right now, he's far more concerned with his upcoming role in Disney's Mary Poppins sequel.
And the rest of the special is fun, too. First of all, Miranda's father, Luis, sounds exactly like his son. And while Luis Miranda had hopes that his son might go into his chosen trade, politics, he joked about Lin-Manuel might actually be a "what is more political than chang[ing] the face of Latinos in this country?" Lin-Manuel even brings up the emotional moment when Christopher Jackson serenaded both President Obama and a portrait of George Washington with "Teach Them How to Say Goodbye" as a highlight from this momentous year.
And another "immigrant [who] gets the job done" honored by the special? Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, a pediatrician and researcher, played a huge role in finding out about the lead poisoning in Flint, MI. And after her data was exposed to the public, finally, the Michigan governor and the rest of the nation was forced to pay attention to what was happening in the low-income city. Dr. Mona, as she's known to her young patients, said she is "infuriated" to know that the city still doesn't have clean water, but she also assures Roberts that she's not going to stop fighting for the safety of the city and, especially, Flint's kids.
Of course Lin-Manuel Miranda was going to be honored in this special, but Game Changers with Robin Roberts stands out by also including Dr. Mona, making the show's dedication to how much immigrants and first-generation Americans changed the face of the nation this year.