You know that old saying: if at first you fail miserably, double, then triple down. That seems to be the thought behind Taiki Waititi’s latest big swing. The director and his wife, Rita Ora, are developing a musical stage adaptation of the infamous Fyre Festival.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fyre Fest The Musical is slated to be a musical comedy based on the life story of the famously disastrous 2017 influencer festival co-founded by Billy McFarland and rapper Ja Rule that promised sets from Blink-182, Pusha T, Disclosure and Migos, among others. As you might recall, the event tipped as a “luxury” gathering in the Bahamas in teasers featuring models Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid and Emily Ratajkowski was canceled at the last minute, stranding celebrities and ticketbuyers on an island with sub-par food, flimsy tents and none of the high-end amenities they were promised.
McFarland pleaded guilty to wire fraud in 2018 and spent several years in prison before being released in 2022. He reportedly planned to re-boot the failed event in 2025, but the show was canceled two months after being announced after organizers reportedly failed to lock down a venue. The festival and McFarland were the subjects of two similar documentaries on Hulu and Netflix in 2019.
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According to THR, no production timeline has been shared yet for the stage show and it was unclear at press time if it is headed for Broadway. The book for the musical will be written by director and Super Bowl commercial veteran Bryan Buckley, who will also direct. Oscar- and Grammy-winner Paul Epworth (Adele, Rihanna) will write the music, with David Korins (Hamilton) tapped to design the sets.
A synopsis describes the musical as “not just a Greek-sized tragedy of one man’s con. It’s a satirical indictment of an entire generation. It’s about as wrong as a bad idea can go.”
“Working in the theater is always fun. I mean I haven’t done it for 15 years because it was no longer fun, but I’ve been told it will be fun this time. And I believe them,” Waititi told THR. “When Bryan Buckley told me he wanted to make a musical about the Fyre Festival, I said ‘Who the hell is Bryan Buckley?’ I then remembered we’ve been friends and work mates for 15 years so it was kinda hard to say no. Honestly, I think the idea is exciting, weird, and potentially disastrous, which seems apt and is how I like to work. I can’t wait to get started and snatch me some of that sweet American theatre money.”
Buckley was equally comedically incredulous. “I never saw myself doing a theatrical musical comedy,” he said. “But then again, I never saw something completely mind-bendingly ridiculous and intriguing as what went down with Fyre-festival. A spectacular failed endeavor — that will haunt a generation forever. I cannot wait to get this show out to the world. And yeah man, this time there will actually be music or your money back.”
