How Much of ‘tick, tick…BOOM!’ Is Actually True?

tick, tick… BOOM! premiered on Netflix on November 19th, 2021, and quickly became one of the biggest films of the year. The film marked Lin-Manuel Miranda’s feature directorial debut and starred Andrew Garfield, Robin de Jesús, Alexandra Shipp, Joshua Henry, Judith Light, and Vanessa Hudgens. Tick, Tick… Boom! garnered Garfield an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Additionally, the film was nominated for a Best Film Editing Oscar.

tick, tick… BOOM! is a biographical, musical drama that follows the life of a real American playwright, Jonathan Larson (Garfield). The film is based on Larson’s semi-autobiographical play of the same name. tick, tick… BOOM! follows Larson, an aspiring composer doubting his career choice, on top of managing his personal life and relationships. Furthermore, the film explores Larson’s intense work ethic, how he dealt with rejection, and the many things he gave up and lost in hopes of one day succeeding.

It’s a poignant film that pays tribute to Larson and celebrates musical theater. The film was a strong adaptation of the original tick, tick… BOOM! play and also featured a soundtrack wholly composed of Larson’s songs. Meanwhile, the cast of tick, tick…BOOM! are nothing short of incredible. Garfield and de Jesús’s performances, in particular, were praised for both their musical and acting ability.

Is tick, tick… BOOM! a true story?

tick, tick… BOOM! starts off with a disclaimer that the film is the true story of Larson, “except for the parts Jonathan made up.” Hence, whether tick, tick… BOOM! is based on a true story remains a bit ambiguous throughout the film. tick, tick… BOOM! is recounting Larson’s life in much of his own words through the play he wrote, but since the play was only semi-autobiographic, there are some made-up aspects of the film.

The general premise of tick, tick… BOOM! is accurate. Larson was an American composer and playwright, who did pen the autobiographical rock monologue, tick, tick… BOOM! , during a rough period in his life where he was disappointed at the rejection of his previous play, Superbia. Larson also did experience his best friend being diagnosed with HIV. Tragically, Larson died suddenly of an aortic dissection at the age of 35, the same day as Rent’s first Off-Broadway preview performance. Unfortunately, Larson never quite received the level of success he desired, until after his passing. He received three posthumous Tony Awards and a posthumous Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his musical, Rent.

However, while the basic premise is true, there are some minor inaccuracies. For example, Susan (Alexandra Shipp) and Michael (de Jesús) aren’t real people. Instead, they were based on Larson’s real-life girlfriends, and best friend, Matt O’Grady. Furthermore, Susan is a composite of several women Larson dated, rather than one girlfriend. Also, O’Grady was never Larson’s roommate and was never involved in the arts. However, despite these minor adjustments, tick, tick… BOOM! , for the most part, has many true aspects of Larson’s real-life story.

(featured image: Netflix)