It is not too much of stretch to imagine Meryl Streep and her pal Nicole Kidman starring in a new, old-fashioned musical, yet seeing Keegan-Michael Key in the ensemble is unexpected – but welcome, nonetheless. However, those women are not the only veterans to the genre and the comedian is far from the last surprise in The Prom cast.
Directed by Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy, the film is based on a Tony-nominated hit stage show of the same name that was actually inspired by a heartwarming true story. It focuses on an Indiana teenager whose plea to take her girlfriend to the annual school dance convinces the conservative school board to cancel the event entirely. Upon hearing the news, a quartet of theater actors suffering from their own personal crises decide to give the lonely student a chance to be herself by organizing their own prom.