BILL CONDON: It seems so obvious, doesnt it?
The extraordinary talent that she has, she would have so flourished in the old studio system.
DEADLINE:The story of the relationship between the two men in the cell gives the film some grounding.
(L-R) Tonatiuh and Diego Luna in Bill Condon’s ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’Sundance
CONDON: So its this cross-pollinated, cross genre thing.
But Jennifer, Jennifer.
She has 11 musical numbers and we shot all of them in three and one-half weeks.
Bill CondonMega
I dont know anybody else who could do that.
So you knew she could dance.
CONDON: I think its going to be a revelation for everybody.
But she got this gig as a teenager.
This is her returning to something that she intended to do when she started.
DEADLINE:This would seem catnip for a lot ofactresses who sing and dance.
How did this become Jennifers vehicle?
CONDON: Well, I sat down and wrote this script with no deal involved or anything like that.
Because its not certainly an obvious studio movie.
Not only was it, how do you get it made, but also that quality.
They all have that extra oomph.
We dont grow that many divas anymore, but shes one of them.
It was so interesting.
She just has that extra charisma and glow, I think.
CONDON: He was among hundreds who auditioned and you hone it down, and keep honing it down.
We put him through his paces, in the dance scenes, and working with Diego.
But more than that, that he really could embody this very, very complicated character.
He has to hold the screen withDiego Lunain those scenes, and with Jennifer in the music scenes.
And then theres the other X factor.
That was the tough thing, finding the three together, who could really balance the movie.
CONDON: Just as Jennifer was the first and only choice, so was Diego.
Because the thing I really think about this version is that it is more explicitly a love story.
That was a quality.
He has that quality that makes it believable he would start to open up as the film progresses.
But for me, Ive had the good luck to work with a handful of just flat-out great actors.
I think he is right there at the top of that list.
He just blew me away every day we worked together.
CONDON: Well, first of all, it was a groundbreaking movie in the 80s.
Both of those things were really important, and I enjoyed both.
So that was the original instinct.
There are massive differences between this and the other two versions.
They explained why it felt important to do a new version.
First of all, when we wrote this novel almost 50 years ago.
I really, really focused on everything that was in that extraordinary book.
And thats something that had not been included in any other version.
It also had more than those other versions because of the times in which they were made.
There was this sense of a limit to how much a mainstream audience could accept.
The relationship between the cellmates was presented as transactional.
When they finally do kiss, Valentine is doing it only so that Molina will pass information on.
The world has grown in 50 years and that felt like an important thing to explore.
He talks more about a favorite actress than telling the stories of a specific movie.
I think thats the big challenge with something like this.
DEADLINE: Emilia PerezandWickedare two musicals that gotBest Picture Oscar nominationsthis week.
Youve written and/or directed musicals fromChicagotoDreamgirls,The Greatest Showman,Beauty and the Beast.
What does this portend for the health of the movie musical?
CONDON: The nominations are thrilling.
This is a genre I love, and it has been declared DOA about 30 times in history.
Remember in the thirties, when sound came in?
Busby Berkeley was the first revival.
They did it in such a bold, contemporary way.
If one of them disappoints commercially, suddenly its like, oh, thats gone.
Jon Chu had a big hit withWicked, butIn The Heightsis a wonderful movie too.
So I think the great thing is that people are still at it and committed to it.
I think its part of the excitement and anxiety of going to Sundance.
For me, the first time there wasGods and Monsters.
I do think thats why musicals endure, because theyre great to see in a crowd.
Theyre great to see in a theater, theres something communal.
Theres something about suddenly people breaking out into applause or like withWicked, theyre singing along.
That really makes a case for why people should go back to the theater.
You see yourself and your cohorts throwing yourself into another Academy Awards down the line?
CONDON:Its funny.
It just feels as if the chance to really celebrate 100 years would be pretty remarkable if it happened.
But yeah, its an intriguing idea, theres no question.
DEADLINE:Youve covered lots of genres over your career.
Blockbusters like theTwilight Sagafilms, musicals, but I saw you also did aCandymansequel when you needed to work.
What did that Sundance experience mean to you?
Theres no doubt about it.
I was working as a journeyman, trying to learn everything I could.
And then we brought it there.
That was a conscious course correction.
I didnt come to that festival on anybodys radar as somebody who was capable of that.
So we had the most wonderful reception.
DEADLINE:An overnight sensation after years of slogging along?
CONDON: More of a slow burn.
We left there without distribution and it took several months.
And then Lionsgate, where they just believed in the movie, took it on.
No one saw that it would work the way it did.
It was at the beginning of a kind of revival of gay movies.
So I think that made it seem a little bit more marginal.
But again, it is interesting to be reliving that again here, going and premiering something.
This movie is the closest in spirit toGods And Monsters.
Its about Hollywood, and its also a gay film.
So I dont know.
I suspect its going to be a very emotional couple of days.
