Lin-Manuel Miranda has come “full circle” with Oscar nomination after the annual ceremony inspired him to take a musical career path.
The 42-year-old composer wrote the score for Disney's “Encanto” movie which has received a nomination for Academy Award for Best Original Score at the upcoming ceremony and the acclaimed songwriter gushed about how he "fell in love" with animated movies as a child.
He said: "I literally fell in love with the Oscars because of Disney animated movies. I was ride or die for 'The Little Mermaid'.
“That was my favourite movie in my young life. And I watched the Oscars for the first time that year, because if 'Kiss the Girl' or 'Under the Sea' didn't win, I was ready to riot as a nine-year-old.
“Then as a result you get to watch the Oscars. And Billy Crystal does this amazing job as the host, and it became my entry into a world of movies that just aren't offered to kids."
The Broadway composer - who is also known for his megahit “Hamilton” - explained how the Oscars became an "entry point" to his fascination with his career and how he feels he has now come "full circle" since falling in love with 'The Little Mermaid.'
He told Collider: " It became this kind of entry point into a wider world for me. So the fact that I'm here with the Disney song is wildly full circle for me, because that's the reason I tuned in in the first place.”
“Encanto” is up against “Don't Look Up”, “Dune”, “The Power of the Dog” and “Parallel Mothers” for the accolade of Best Score, with the animated Disney film also facing competition from “Flee”, “Luca” , “The Mitchells vs. the Machines”, and “Raya and the Last Dragon” for the title of Best Animated Feature Film.
The 94th Academy Awards are set to take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, on March 27, 2022 and will be hosted by Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes, with superstars including as Lady Gaga, Samuel L. Jackson and Anthony Hopkins set to hand out statues.