Matilda, or What To Do With the British Musical?

Americans may be credited with inventing the modern day musical, but for decades, Britain has made substantial contributions to the canon. Les Mis, The Lion King, The Rocky Horror Picture Show – none of these iconic moneymakers would exist were it not for the efforts of supremely talented Britons. That’s to say nothing of all the titanic shows that originated in the West End, or ones about the British experience – Billy Elliot, Mamma Mia, and the sliding scale of Andrew Lloyd Webber productions (a spectrum that runs from genius to unwatchable) among them. Whenever a stage show hits a stratospheric level of bankable popularity, these shows get adapted into films, some of which become entrenched into pop culture, others which are hastily forgotten.The pattern continues with Netflix and Sony’s Matilda The Musical.

The new adaptation is a film version of Tim Minchin and the Royal Shakespeare Society’s 2011 musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s book (which in itself has already been a film – keep up!), filled with bright characters, inventive lyricism, and an enviable amount of catchy songs. Minchin’s musical has charmed audiences over the last 11 years, but its film adaptation was a long time coming, stuck in development from around 2013 and then delayed for COVID, before the streaming giant swooped in.(Matilda’s development process was so long, it actually predates Netflix’s complete co-opting of the rights to Dahl’s work.) Even so, Matilda the Musical begins with a Marvel-esque ident letting us know we are in the authorised Roald Dahl content universe, although Willy Wonka does not appear in a post-credit scene to invite Matilda into a super team of quirky characters – a missed opportunity.