Did Producers Get It Wrong with Nick Jonas in Broadway's 'The Last Five Years'?

Nick Jonas in 'The Last Five Years' on Broadway. Photo: Matthew Murphy

by Chris Peterson, OnStage Blog Founder

I wanted to be excited. I really did.

The idea of The Last Five Years finally getting a Broadway production—after more than two decades of cult status, cast recordings, regional revivals, and that 2014 film—felt overdue. And the idea of pairing Adrienne Warren, a bona fide powerhouse, with Nick Jonas? Well, it raised eyebrows... but it also raised curiosity. Could this be the mainstream breakthrough this musical always deserved?

Here’s the thing: I love this show. Deeply. Obsessively. It’s the one I return to when I need to cry, or reflect, or be reminded of how brilliantly musical theatre can capture the ache of love lost. Jason Robert Brown’s score? Perfect. Heartbreaking. And structurally, this show is unlike anything else. I want nothing but the best for it—because it’s meant so much to me, and to so many others.

And yes, while we’re here, let me say it: The Last Five Years movie with Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan is incredibly underrated. The performances are honest. The vocals are strong. The emotional transitions, especially in the duet moments, are grounded and clear. It may not be a perfect film, but it understood the rhythm of this story in a way I keep going back to. It deserves more credit than it gets.

So now that the curtain’s up and the reviews are in, we’re left with a harder question: Was casting Nick Jonas in The Last Five Years a mistake?

Let me say this up front—I don’t believe in Broadway gatekeeping. I want more people to fall in love with musical theatre. I want name recognition to bring new audiences in. And I think it’s fantastic when pop stars take the leap into live performance, especially when they do the work and respect the art form. But The Last Five Years is a beast. And Jamie Wellerstein is not a part you can fake your way through.

This is a role that demands real emotional architecture. It’s not just about hitting notes (though let’s be honest—that’s part of it too). It’s about nuance. Timing. Charm that masks insecurity. Narcissism that slowly erodes into loneliness. It’s about making the audience both root for and resent you—sometimes in the same breath.

And based on what critics and audience members are saying, Jonas’s performance never quite gets there.

Entertainment Weekly wrote that Jonas "shines in comedic moments but struggles to convey deeper emotional layers."

Vulture observed, "Jonas, while vocally capable, presents a Jamie lacking nuance."

The New York Post went further: “Nick Jonas is miscast, with unintelligible diction and a lack of expressive performance, rendering his character Jamie devoid of personality.”

That’s tough, because I believe Nick Jonas loves theatre. His Broadway debut in Les Mis, his run in How to Succeed, his commitment to live performance—it’s all real. But this role? It’s unforgiving.

So yes, maybe it was a mistake.

Not because Nick Jonas isn’t talented. Not because he isn’t trying. But because The Last Five Years deserves more. Deserves better. Deserves everything.

And when you love a show this much—you just want the rest of the world to love it, too.