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The Musical

Play trailer 2:08 Poster for The Musical Now Playing 1h 24m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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63% Tomatometer 48 Reviews 64% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
Doug, a frustrated playwright and middle school theater teacher, learns his ex is dating his nemesis, the school principal. To get revenge and cost him a Blue Ribbon Award, Doug secretly stages the most inappropriate play imaginable.
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The Musical

Critics Reviews

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Thelma Adams AARP Movies for Grownups Sep 26, 2026
3/5
While The Musical’s comic reach may a bit limited -- like a theater set model -- it still has charm aplenty. Keep an eye on its young cast; there’s a lot of talent in those wings. Go to Full Review
Juan Barquin RogerEbert.com Sep 18, 2026
1/4
Giselle Bonilla’s feature debut simply doesn’t have anything worth saying. It is neither funny nor provocative, so what, if anything, is left? Go to Full Review
Natalia Winkelman New York Times Sep 17, 2026
We find some welcome respite from this role in the young actors playing Doug’s theater students, who are genuinely funny as competitive overachievers. Go to Full Review
Aaron Neuwirth We Live Entertainment 7 hrs ago
4/10
I really like the premise of this film, which makes it all the more unfortunate that I didn’t find the movie particularly funny until the end. Go to Full Review
Tara McNamara Common Sense Media Sep 25, 2026
3/5
Giselle Bonilla's feature directorial debut is an outrageous dark comedy that's likely to leave viewers both aghast and gasping for air from laughing so hard. Go to Full Review
Joseph Tomastik Loud and Clear Reviews Sep 22, 2026
3/5
The collar-tugging discomfort doesn’t come as much from the titular musical as just watching Leibowitz be the smallest, pettiest, most sniveling little weasel you’ll ever see. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Mr Hollywood 6 days ago Hilarious original movie. It sticks to the road it sets out as. Definitely one of the better films of the years See more Christopher Sep 25, 2026 Absolutely loved it! See more Olga Sep 23, 2026 Hilarious black humor comedy. Reminded me of "Serial Mom" at times, especially the very last scene. Oh, and it gets +100 points for using Enigma's "The Return to Innocence" for soundtrack in the culmination scene. Plus duration 1 hr 20 min - why don't we have movies under 1.5 hr duration anymore? :) See more Christopher Sep 22, 2026 Clever script, some spot on commentary about public schools and the administration going out of its way to be painfully, uncomfortably politically correct. Lead characters weren't likable IMO. The kids were good. This could have been so much better than it was if they had added more depth to the lead characters who were very one-dimensional. See more Maria Sep 20, 2026 Such an original and incredibly funny movie. Will Brill's comedy chops were amazing and the kids were brilliant and if course Rib Lowe was so dynamic. It's a MUST SEE!!! See more Nico Sep 20, 2026 Absolutely hilarious! Go see this movie. The whole theater was cracking up. It's a total blast! Also, Mikey is the GOAT!!! See more Read all reviews
The Musical

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Movie Info

Synopsis Doug, a frustrated playwright and middle school theater teacher, learns his ex is dating his nemesis, the school principal. To get revenge and cost him a Blue Ribbon Award, Doug secretly stages the most inappropriate play imaginable.
Director
Giselle Bonilla
Producer
Rob Lowe, Greg Lauritano, Alexander Heller, Findlay Brown, Jordan Backhus
Screenwriter
Alexander Heller
Distributor
Blue Harbor Entertainment
Production Co
Unapologetic Film, Megamix
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 18, 2026, Limited
Box Office (Gross USA)
$214.2K
Runtime
1h 24m
Aspect Ratio
Digital 2.39:1
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