The bizarre musical Spike Lee wants to make: “Hopefully one day”
You know instantly when you’re watching a Spike Lee movie.
The slick director’s visual style and radical subject matter make him an immediate standout in any line-up of filmmakers. His films have reached the highest of highs and have become cinematic institutions, as well as producing some of the maddest on-screen moments you’re ever likely to see.
While most of NYU’s coolest professors’ output is focused on social issues facing African-Americans, he has branched out from this mould several times. He remade the classic Korean action film Oldboy in 2013 and recently tackled a Westernised version of a classic Akira Kurosawa story with Highest 2 Lowest. He also played a key role in the development of the video game NBA 2K16, which has got to be his most unexpected career move.
There aren’t many things left for Lee to do in the field of entertainment – except win an Oscar, but let’s not get into all that now. According to an interview with the Radio Times, there is one arena that he would love to conquer and, honestly, it sounds like an incredible idea.
“Hopefully one day – a musical,” he said. A Spike Lee musical, wow! But what would it be about? Racial injustice in America? Systemic prejudice within the government? Perhaps the life story of an influential civil rights figure? Nope. According to the bespectacled madman, he wants his show to be about “the origin of Viagra!” Oh… ok then.
“Hopefully we’ll get it. It’s a musical, singing and dancing!” Lee reiterated. “It’s about the origin. Pfizer. The blue pill.”
I can’t believe I’m having to do this on a respected film website, but here is some context about Viagra. I can only apologise. The brand name for the drug sildenafil, the famous blue pill, was developed by pharmaceutical giants Pfizer in the 1980s. It was originally developed as a treatment for angina, a lack of blood flow to the heart. It doesn’t sound like the most riveting subject matter for a big musical, but if anyone can make it happen, it’s ol’ Spike.
The closest Lee has come to directing a musical thus far in his career is 2020’s American Utopia. The film is a live recording of David Byrne’s acclaimed Broadway show of the same name, which was created as part of the former Talking Heads star’s project ‘Reasons to be Cheerful’. The show itself received rave reviews, as did Lee’s film version – including by this very publication. Alongside this, his other musical projects include two documentaries about Michael Jackson, including a special celebration of his acclaimed Bad album.
The idea of a musical based on a pill sold in pub bathrooms might sound completely outlandish, but stranger things have happened in the world of Broadway. Avenue Q is a very raunchy musical in which the cast is made up almost entirely of puppets, while Urinetown is a satirical show about a dystopian future in which private toilets are banned. Jerry Seinfeld starred in a musical film about Pop-Tarts, for crying out loud. With all this in mind, expect to see ‘Boner: A Spike Lee Joint’ hitting the stage any time now.
