It's been a while since we've seen fun, iconic dance movies like the ones we grew up watching in the early 2000s (Step Up, You Got Served, and Honey are some of the few that come to mind) but Netflix's latest teen flick Work It is hoping to fill that void for a new generation of viewers!
Besides being a hilarious, light-hearted reprieve from the dumpster fire of the world around us, Work It is also inclusive AF. In fact, one of the movie's main stars, out singer and actor Keiynan Lonsdale (who we know and love from Love, Simon), got to play a scene-stealing, over-the-top, queer dance captain named Juilliard who is giving the rest of the cast a run for their money and throwing all sorts of shade while doing so.
"I've been a dancer my whole life, so I felt like I understood the dance world a lot. I could draw from a lot that for inspiration, and you know, there's always so much drama that happens in the world in general, but especially in the dance world, so I got to go from that," Keiynan told PRIDE about how he prepared for the role, and how much he loved getting to play a gay dance captain who is the HBIC of the school. "I love the idea of playing a villain, and you know, we all got a little bit of that in us. So I could draw from that."
Expanding on the characterization of Juilliard, Keiynan continued:
"He was probably the first, you know, maybe the first openly queer guy at the school that was like the boss of the school. He was just like, "I'm it." And so I felt like he was maybe a bit concerned about losing that position because he was the first there. So he sort of took on a lot of pressure and it sort of built up more insecurity because of it and more pressure to be the best. So I wanted to play into that because, you know, he's got some layers."
But the spirit of inclusion doesn't just stop with Keiynan's character. The main premise of Work It is that a motley crew of misfits from different walks of life come together to learn from each other, find friendship, and of course, dance.
"That's something that I was so, so happy about and one of the reasons why I'm so proud to be involved with this film," lead actress Sabrina Carpenter, who plays Quinn, told PRIDE about Work It's inclusion. "You really have a character that not only wants to, like, achieve her goals, but is hoping to do it the right way and wants to include people that, you know, are like her, that don't necessarily have everybody believing in them and giving them opportunities and some of them have to work really for what they want."
"I think the entire movie is about finding your place or finding where you belong, and the point is, the whole messages is that you do belong, that everywhere can be your place, that you can dance around in any place you find your power or potential to be, and I think you can learn something new from everyone you meet," co-star Liza Koshy added.
"I think the spirit of inclusivity and diversity is very evident throughout the film," actor and dancer Jordan Fisher said. "I'm proud of what you see and the people that are a part of it, I think it's a really great thing. I also think that in terms of building people up, playing to people's strengths, and figuring out how to make something from nothing is all very important and very inspiring. I love the fact that obviously it is a dance film, so there's a very warm, good-natured vibe about it, but it's really about people, and that's the thing that I love most about it."
Work It is now streaming on Netflix!
