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Rita Moreno responded to criticism that the musical adaptation In the Heights failed to represent the Afro-Latino population in Washington Heights in remarks he made Tuesday.
In a guest appearance on The Late Show, the Puerto Rican actor defended Lin-Manuela Miranda, who wrote the score and lyrics for the original music on which the film is based, as it was produced and starred in the film. Moreno said the criticism, which focused on the dearth of dark-skinned Afro-Latino characters in the film, “really bothers me.” (Miranda co-produced Moreno’s documentary Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Decided to Do It.)
She continued, “You can never do right, it seems. This is the guy who literally brought Latinos and Puerto Ricans to America. I couldn’t do it. I mean, I’d say I did, but I couldn’t. Lin Manuel did it, on his own.” I was really happy with the cut and I’m proud that he made my documentary.”
When asked by host Stephen Colbert if she says she understands the criticism but the criticism was misplaced in focusing on Miranda, Moreno replied, “Well, I’m simply saying, can’t you just wait a bit and leave it alone? There are a lot of Puerto Rican people who are also from Guatemalans are black and fair too. We are all colors in Puerto Rico. That’s how it is. It would be great if they didn’t come up with this and leave it alone, just for now. They’re really attacking the wrong person.”
Tonight: Rita Moreno comments on the controversy surrounding her friend Lin-Manuel Miranda and his movie In the Heights. #LSSC pic.twitter.com/4cQcvviaLf
– The Late Show (@colbertlateshow) June 16, 2021
On Sunday, a video from The Root went viral online in which host and producer Phyllis Lyonne confronts The Heights director John M. Choo and actors including Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera and Gregory Diaz IV about color in the film’s selection choices. Chu acknowledged that the conversation was “fair,” adding that he hopes more people will be encouraged to “tell more stories and get out there and do it right.”
On Monday, Miranda addressed the criticism himself in a Twitter message. “I can hear the hurt and frustration with the coloring, and the feeling that I’m still invisible in the comments. I heard that without adequate Afro-Latino representation, the work seemed to be extracted from the community we wanted to represent with pride and joy.” “In trying to paint a mosaic of this community, we failed. I’m really sorry.”
Miranda also spoke about her acting issue with Trevor Noah on The Daily Show on Tuesday. He began “Your job as an artist is to write what’s missing,” generally speaking of In the Heights adding that, personally, he saw no future for himself in musical theatre. “It was like, how many of us can join the board. That is the goal.” He made it clear that he was not interested in telling the stories of Latinos from the 1950s “with knives in their hands, which were very much represented in musical theatre, oddly enough.”
Noah noted criticism of In the Heights, and in particular Miranda’s response—that he was listening. The late-night host asked Miranda how he handled criticism and what he thought he could do better. “I can’t legislate how people feel,” Miranda replied. “All I want is for this neighborhood to feel visible. And if there’s a part of it that doesn’t feel visible and they say that, you have to admit it and let it in. All I can do is learn from it and pledge to do better.”
He noted that although there was Afro-Latino representation in the film, “Beef” was specifically about dark-skinned Afro-Latinos in the lead and lead roles. “I totally get it, I’ve received it, and I have to do better next time,” Miranda said.
At the same time, Miranda said he was happy to make space to feel proud of the project and what has been accomplished. “We can’t make things like that often, so I have to be able to keep everything.”
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