Lin-Manuel Miranda Says Octet Cast Has “Perfect Harmony”
Lin-Manuel Miranda says the cast of his upcoming Octet musical film developed a close bond and flawless vocal chemistry from the beginning.
Miranda, 46, spoke with PEOPLE at the Roger Federer: An Icon Returns to New York event in New York City on Tuesday, Aug. 25. The director said it was “such a dream” to hear the film’s stars sing together for the first time.
“It was the first day of rehearsal. And frankly, they formed such a special unit,” said Miranda, who attended the event with his wife, Vanessa Nadal. “I’m really just excited to finish the film to honor their collaboration. They had to become this insane eight-part harmony singing unit, and they did.”
He added, “The group chat is lit, and I can’t wait for you all to see [the movie].”
Who Stars in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Octet Film?
Written by Dave Malloy and directed by Miranda, the movie adapts the stage musical Octet, which premiered Off-Broadway in 2019. The official synopsis reads: “Eight internet-obsessed people meet in a church basement and lock their phones in a box,” and continues, “The musical follows the octet as they struggle with digital dependency, charting their compulsions using only the analog vibrancy of their own voices.”
The film’s octet will be played by Amanda Seyfried, Rachel Zegler, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Phillipa Soo, Gaten Matarazzo, Jonathan Groff, Tramell Tillman and Paul-Jordan Jansen.
Miranda announced the cast on April 14 by sharing a photo of a rehearsal sign-in sheet on Instagram and writing, “Rehearsals have begun.”
He first revealed on April 2 that he would direct a film adaptation of Octet.
“I haven’t stopped thinking about Octet since I saw Annie Tippe’s premiere production in November of 2019,” he said at the time. “Dave Malloy’s score is versatile, brilliant and grows more relevant with each passing year. It won’t leave me alone, so here we are.”
Amanda Seyfried and Sheryl Lee Ralph on Octet
Seyfried, 40, later told PEOPLE that she immediately agreed to join the film despite initially not knowing what the project was.
“I didn’t even know what it was exactly,” she explained while attending the 2026 Tiffany & Co. Blue Book Gala on April 16. “I just knew that Lin-Manuel Miranda was making a new project and he was directing a new movie, and it was a musical. … I did meet with him. I mean, I’d met him before, you know, around town, but I met with him specifically for this project. I was like, ‘I don’t care what it is. I’m in.’ And he said, ‘Let me just explain it to you.’ ”
“But it’s a cappella, and I’m a born singer,” Seyfried continued. “It’s what I love to do. It’s what makes me happy, and to do it for work is absolutely better than I could have ever hoped, so I’m in it right now. We’re in it right now, and some of the best moments of my life have just happened this week.”
Ralph said she felt “frightened” about taking on a role in Octet.
“I’d have to honestly say, working with Lin-Manuel Miranda and that cast of eight was one of the most challenging things I have ever done in a very long time. It frightened me to my core,” she said on the red carpet before the 8th Annual African American Film Critics Association TV Honors on Aug. 8.
“But having come through it, I’m like, ‘Oh my God. I’m all the better for having taken that difficult journey,’ ” Ralph, 69, added.
Octet does not yet have a release date.
