Hairspray is a 2007 musical film. Produced by Zadan/Meron Productions and distributed by New Line Cinema, it was released in the US and the UK on July 20, 2007.

The film is an adaptation of the Tony Award-winning 2002 Broadway musical of the same name, itself adapted from John Waters' 1988 comedy film. Set in 1962 Baltimore, the film follows a "pleasantly plump" girl named Tracy Turnblad as she simultaneously pursues stardom as a dancer on a local TV show and rallies against racial segregation.

Adapted from both Waters' 1988 script and Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell's book for the stage musical by screenwriter Leslie Dixon, the 2007 version of Hairspray is directed and choreographed by Adam Shankman. Hairspray stars John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, and Queen Latifah. The film also stars Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, and introduces newcomer Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad. Hairspray features songs from the Broadway musical written by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, as well as two new Shaiman/Wittman compositions: "Come So Far (Got So Far to Go)," and "Ladies' Choice," and a song composed for the broadway show, but not used on broadway. ("The New Girl in Town")

The Motion Picture Association of America rated Hairspray PG for language, some suggestive content, and momentary teen smoking."

Baltimore, 1962: Plump teenager Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) sings (Good Morning Baltimore) on her way to school.

Later, after school, she and her best friend Penny Pingleton (Amanda Bynes) rush home to watch The Corny Collins Show hosted by Corny Collins (James Marsden) (The Nicest Kids in Town). Tracy's mother Edna (John Travolta) tells them to turn down the volume because she's ironing. Then Penny's strict and religious mother Prudy (Allison Janney) arrives to pick up her laundry and drags Penny out of the house.

After school the next day, Tracy and Penny watch the show outside of a TV shop window, while Link (Zac Efron) sings the song that the other stars are dancing to (It Takes Two). Tracy exclaims that he should be dating her, rather than Amber (Brittany Snow), as she's a much better dancer. Link then says to cut school to come and audition because one of their council members, Brenda, is leaving the show (When asked for how long, she says only for nine months). Edna does not allow Tracy to attend the auditions because she doesn't want her daughter to get hurt from criticism from others. Tracy's father, Wilbur (Christopher Walken) encourages her, saying, "Go for it! You gotta think big to be big!" The next day Tracy and Penny go to station WYZT and find station manager Velma von Tussle (Michelle Pfeiffer) preparing the council members for the auditions while re-living her pageant days (The Legend of Miss Baltimore Crabs). Tracy is rejected after she is asked, "Would you swim in an integrated pool?" to which she replies, "I sure would! I'm all for integration! It's the new frontier." She then walks to school late because of the audition. Her teacher told her, "I trust it was something really important." Tracy mutters, "It should have been."

Tracey is then sent to detention for cutting/lateness to class. When Tracy arrives in detention she meets Seaweed J. Stubbs (Elijah Kelley) and learns a dance called "Peyton Place After Midnight". Link sees Tracy dancing in detention, tells her about the Corny Collins Record Hop, and bumps into her causing Tracy to burst into song (I Can Hear the Bells) which only Penny can hear as she dances her way through the school. The next afternoon, Tracy does the "Peyton Place" dance at the Record Hop as Link sings (Ladies' Choice) and Corny watches.

Later, after Corny puts Tracy on the show, Penny races to the Turnblad's home and shows Edna and Wilbur their daughter as a regular on "The Corny Collins Show". Later, Amber and two council members, Shelley (Sarah Jayne Jensen) and Tammy (Hayley Podschun) sing a song (The New Girl in Town). Later, on the show's Negro Day the trio, The Dynamites do the song also. Velma threatens Motormouth Maybelle (Queen Latifah) for using the same song, but Motormouth points out to Velma that they originally wrote it. Later that evening, Edna is telephoned by Mr. Pinky (Jerry Stiller) saying that he wants Tracy to be his spokesgirl for his store "Mr. Pinky's Hefty Hideaway", a clothing store for plus-size women. Edna is reluctant to go, but ends up getting a makeover with Tracy (Welcome to the '60s). Soon after, Edna and Tracy are taunted by Velma and Amber at a local restaurant. When Velma says, "You'll stop traffic" to Edna, Edna wants to return the clothes, but Tracy convinces her out of it.

The next day, everybody wants detention to see Tracy. But Tracy ends up going to detention again because Amber, in the same class, told their teacher that Tracy said that he had breasts. As Tracy begins to head out Link stands up. The teacher asks Link if he would also like to go to detention. He doesn't answer. The teacher then asks Link if he knew the last words of Patrick Henry. Link replies, "Kiss my ass," earning himself a trip to the detention room. Seaweed leads Link, Tracy, and Penny out of the school in song (Run and Tell That) to a platter party at his mother Motormouth Maybelle's record shop. Amber, impersonating a man named "Mike," calls Edna, who then goes to the record shop intent on taking Tracy home. Motormouth invites Edna to partake of her cooking, while singing the praises of being plus-sized (Big, Blonde and Beautiful).

Edna and Tracy return home, and Edna prepares for bed with new confidence in herself. Meanwhile, Velma goes the shop to seduce Wilbur (Big, Blonde and Beautiful (Reprise)). Edna finds them and Velma tricks Edna into thinking Wilbur is in it with her. Edna, really upset and goes to cry upstairs. At Tracy's urging, Wilbur returns to apologize ((You're) Timeless to Me) and they have a fun time dancing outside.

While at the record shop, Motormouth suggests that everybody meet at 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon to lead a march to the WYZT studios to get on the 11:00 news to protest segregration (I Know Where I've Been), stemming from Velma's scheming decision to drop "Negro Day" from the show, and partially because of Tracy's popularity as well as Velma controlling Link's music career. They are halted at the WYZT TV station, where Motormouth and Tracy tries to talk to an officer. In doing so, Tracy taps the officer with her protest sign; the officer characterizes it as an assault, and tries to arrest. Tracy manages to escape the crowd and seeks refuge in Penny's house while an all-points bulletin is put out for Tracy. Penny takes Tracy to their family's basement as a place for her to hide, but Prudy finds them and calls the cops. While Tracy waits in the bomb shelter for the police to arrive, Prudy confines Penny to her room. In the meantime, Link goes to the Turnblad's apartment in an attempt to find Tracy; her parents invite him in. While Link sings to Tracy`s picture, Seaweed rescues Penny and they in turn rescue Tracy. They all sing about how it doesn't matter what color you are and how love matters no matter what (Without Love).

The next day is the Corny Collins Miss Teenage Hairspray pageant, aired live from the studios of WYZT (It's Hairspray). Amber's in the lead due to Velma rigging the voting by hiding all the votes that aren't for Amber in her bra. Tracy's parents and friends try to get Tracy into the station as there are police officers all around all trying to intercept her. Eventually Tracy gets in via an empty hairspray can prop the cops used as a battering ram to get the stations' doors open (Velma thought she was in the place and had it jammed, not knowing it was a diversion). The pageant starts and there are talent agents there (including Ricki Lake, Marc Shaiman, Adam Shankman, and Scott Wittman). Tracy arrives coming down from a stage and she begins to sing (You Can't Stop the Beat) and when Link jumps in with Tracy, Amber becomes stuck in the opening where Tracy entered from. Seaweed also pulled in a shy Penny onto the screen who bursts into energy and declares, "I am now a checkerboard chick!" before kissing Seaweed on live television. When Prudy sees this at home on TV, she falls over the coffee table in shock. Corny then announces Little Inez (Taylor Parks), Seaweed's little sister, as the winner of the pageant as she dances up a storm and gets everybody's vote, thus integrating the show. Velma is fired by Mr. Spritzer (Paul Dooley) after she is caught on camera by Edna and Wilbur telling Amber how she rigged the voting and everybody joins in the song. At the end of the movie, Link and Tracy share a kiss.

The end credits have character images with the actor's name and show little televisions and hair spray cans as "Come So Far (Got So Far to Go)" and two songs from the stage musical - "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now" and "Cooties" - are heard. "Mama" is performed by the original film's Tracy (Ricki Lake), the original Broadway Tracy (Marissa Jaret Winokur), and this version's Tracy, Nikki Blonsky; and also includes a very special cameo by the original Broadway Edna (Harvey Fierstein).

Hairspray was produced on a budget of $75 million. An open casting call was announced to cast unknowns in Atlanta, New York City, and Chicago. Parks was chosen for the role of Lil' Inez, and Blonsky and Kelley were chosen to play Tracy and Seaweed.

Filming took place in Toronto, and Hamilton, Ontario, Canada from September 5 to December 8, 2006, with the rest of the production and location settings done in Baltimore (the film's setting) in-between and after the Canadian scenes. Most of the street scenes were shot at the intersection of Dundas Avenue West and Roncesvalles Avenue. Some of the signage for the 60s-era stores remains up along the street. Lord Lansdowne P.S. appears as the high school exterior. Scenes in Hamilton were shot between November 22 to December 2 at the old Queen Victoria School. The school was scheduled to be demolished after film production was completed. The majority of the filming was done in Canada rather than Baltimore because of lower costs in Canada and because Toronto was better equipped with the soundstages needed to film a musical, and the fact the city still has active streetcars. They also did some of the post-production, including several of the musical numbers, in Los Angeles.

The Hairspray cast guest-starred on The Oprah Winfrey Show on May 16, 2007. During this program, host Oprah Winfrey debuted some of the new Hairspray songs including, "The New Girl in Town" and , "Big, Blonde and Beautiful (reprise)".

Director Adam Shankman told interviewer Terry Gross on NPR's Fresh Air that in Hairspray, "there's a lot of winks" to films that influenced the director.

Shankman did not discuss how cameos served to reference the 1988 film, but many actors from the 1988 film appear in the 2007 version in smaller roles.

Jerry Stiller appears as Mr. Pinky in the 2007 version; he played the original Wilbur Turnblad in 1988.

Shawn Thompson, who originated the role of Corny Collins in the 1988 film, appears as the TV newsman reporting the protest outside the studio during "Miss Teenage Hairspray". In the 1988 film, that same role was played by Buddy Deane, whose self-titled TV show inspired the "Hairspray" films and play.

Mink Stole, who has appeared in all of Waters' films, appears in the 2007 film as a woman smoking on the street just before the flasher opens his trenchcoat to expose himself to a group of older women.

Ricki Lake, who originated the role of Tracy Turnblad in the 1988 film, appears in the 2007 version as William Morris Agent #1 at Miss Teenage Hairspray.

Marc Shaiman, who co-wrote the music and co-wrote the lyrics for the musical, appears as William Morris Agent #2 at Miss Teenage Hairspray.

Scott Wittman, who co-wrote the lyrics for the musical, appears as William Morris Agent #3 at Miss Teenage Hairspray.

Adam Shankman, who directed and choreographed the film, appears as William Morris Agent #4 at Miss Teenage Hairspray.

John Waters, who wrote and directed the original 1988 film, and also played the role of Dr. Fredrickson in that film, cameos as the flasher who lives next door in the 2007 version.

On Fresh Air, Shankman said several sequences used in the 2007 Hairspray were meant to reference other film musicals.

The opening sequence of the 2007 film includes clouds parting to reveal an arial view of a Baltimore neighborhood. After Terry Gross asked whether the arial shot was a "shout out" to the opening sequence to West Side Story, Shankman said: "Yeah, but it came through the clouds, so I combo'ed it with The Sound of Music. It was Sound of Music into West Side Story."

When Tracy Turnblad rides the garbage truck during the musical number "Good Morning Baltimore," Shankman told Gross it was meant to reference scenes from the movie version of Funny Girl, in which Barbra Streisand in the title role rides a tugboat past the Statue of Liberty while singing "Don't Rain on My Parade." Shankman added that Tracy's hairdo at the end of "Welcome to the Sixties" is also meant to reference Streisand's hair in Funny Girl.

The sequence that features Link singing "Without Love" to a photo of Tracy references a pre-The Wizard of Oz role Judy Garland portrayed in the film Broadway Melody of 1938, Shankman said. In that 1937 film, Garland swoons over a photo of Clark Gable as she sings "You Made Me Love You."

Also on Fresh Air, Shankman said that John Waters offered him this advice before the 2007 production began: "Don't do what I did, don't do what the play did, you've gotta do your own thing." But, Shankman said, "all roads of Hairspray lead back to John Waters."

Shankman has not said whether there are overt references in 2007's Hairspray to Waters' older films, but viewers of his other films may recognize themes from previous Waters' movies:

In Waters' 1972 film Pink Flamingos, a flasher with a sausage tied to his penis flashes two schoolgirls. In 2007's Hairspray, John Waters cameos as a flasher.

In the 1974 film Female Trouble, a scene features three girls smoking in their school bathroom. Three women with similar hairstyles also appear in the 2007 version of Hairspray smoking in the school's ladies room during the song "I Can Hear the Bells."

Also in Female Trouble, the character of Dawn Davenport, played by Divine, is sent to detention after fellow students complain about her.

Musical Numbers:

Good Morning Baltimore - Tracy
The Nicest Kids in Town - Corny, Council Kids
It Takes Two - Link (only the end of the song is heard in the film)
(The Legend of) Miss Baltimore Crabs - Velma, Council Kids**
I Can Hear the Bells - Tracy, Penny (talking)
Ladies' Choice - Link*
The Nicest Kids in Town (Reprise) - Corny, Council Kids, Tracy, Penny, Wilbur, Edna**
The New Girl in Town - Amber, Tammy, Shelley, The Dynamites****
Welcome to the '60s - Tracy, Edna, Mr. Pinky, The Dynamites, Hefty Hideaway Customers**
Run and Tell That - Seaweed, Little Inez, Company
Big, Blonde and Beautiful - Motormouth, Company**
Big, Blonde and Beautiful (Reprise) - Edna, Velma*
(You're) Timeless to Me - Edna, Wilbur
I Know Where I've Been - Motormouth, Company
Without Love - Link, Tracy, Seaweed, Penny, Company**
(It's) Hairspray - Corny, Council Kids**
You Can't Stop the Beat - Tracy, Link, Penny, Seaweed, Edna, Motormouth***
Come So Far (Got So Far to Go) - Motormouth, Tracy, Link, Seaweed* (end credits song)
Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now - Nikki Blonsky, Ricki Lake, Marissa Jaret Winokur and Harvey Fierstein** (end credits song)
Cooties - Aimee Allen** (end credits song)
Legend:
* indicates that the song was written exclusively for the 2007 film
** indicates that the lyrics of the song have been altered or changed
*** indicates that Velma and Amber's verses were cut for the film
**** indicates that the songs were cut from the Broadway musical but were reinstated for the film

"Ladies' Choice" and "Come So Far" were composed especially for this film. "The New Girl in Town" was originally composed for the Broadway musical, but was deemed unnecessary and discarded from the musical; director Adam Shankman decided to use it to advance the movie's storyline.

Two songs present in the stage musical were not included in the film proper, but are played over the end credits. "Cooties", performed by Amber in the stage version, is performed in a contemporary pop rendition by Aimee Allen, though the song is heard as instrumental music during the Miss Hairspray Dance Competition. "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now" was removed from the film's script when screenwriter Leslie Dixon found it unadaptable for film. A third song, "It Takes Two," is heard only in a fragment, with less than a full verse sung. The performance of The Madison, present in both the 1988 film and the stage musical, was replaced for this version by "Ladies' Choice." although a bit of the dance can be seen during "You Can't Stop the Beat." "The Big Dollhouse" was removed from the film entirely.

One additional Shaiman/Wittman song, "I Can Wait," was composed for the film as a solo for Tracy, meant to replace the stage musical's reprise of "Good Morning Baltimore". Neither "I Can Wait" nor "Good Morning Baltimore (Reprise)" is present in the final release print of Hairspray, but the recording of "I Can Wait" was made available as a special bonus track for customers who pre-ordered the film's soundtrack on iTunes.

"(The Legend of) Miss Baltimore Crabs" was slightly trimmed compared to the version that appears on the film's soundtrack album. The movie cuts out Amber's line "Oh, mother. Not more ancient history" and a final exchange where Velma turns away a girl who asks to audition.

In Without Love, on broadway, Tracy has her own verse in the song, but in the film, Tracy's part was cut out.

Also, in "You Can't Stop the Beat", Amber and Velma's verses are cut from the film and do not participate in the end number unlike in the Broadway musical. (this is similar to the 1988 film.)

One notable difference between the stage musical, the original movie and the 2007 film version of Hairspray is that Tracy does not go to jail in the 2007 incarnation. Instead, she is locked up by Prudy Pingleton in the family's bomb shelter. In the original film Tracy goes to jail and is only released after Motormouth Maybelle and Little Inez "talk" to the Mayor, and in the Broadway musical Tracy goes to jail and is held in solitary confinement, but is broken out by Link during the song Without Love. Link uses a can of hairspray and a Zippo lighter to burn through the bars.

The ordering of songs also differs between the 2007 film and the Broadway production (the 1988 film version was not a musical):

In the Broadway musical, Link sings It Takes Two to Tracy on her first day on The Corny Collins Show, but in the film, he sings it on the show before she hears about the auditions.

In the Broadway musical, I Can Hear the Bells was sung by Tracy after she saw Link at the studio, but in the 2007 film, she sings it after she meets him in school.

In the Broadway musical, I Know Where I've Been was sung after Tracy broke out of jail, and in the 2007 film, it is sung during the march.

In the Broadway musical, Without Love was sung with Link singing directly to Tracy while she was in jail. In the film, since Tracy does not go to jail, Link sings it to an imaginary Tracy.

The roles of the Gym Teacher and the Matron, usually played on Broadway by the actress who portrays Prudy Pingleton, have been eliminated.

At the end of the stage musical, Edna was in the giant Ultra Clutch Hairspray can, but in the film, Tracy was in it.

At the end of the Broadway version and the 1988 film, Tracy was declared the pageant winner (the names of the pageant differ in the 1988 and the Broadway incarnation). But in the 2007 version, Little Inez was declared the winner, thus integrating The Corny Collins Show.

Velma does not seduce Wilbur in either previous version, as she does in the 2007 film, and (You're) Timeless to Me is sung after Tracy's arrest in the Broadway show.

Also in the previous versions, Motormouth Maybelle mostly speaks in rhyme; in the 2007 version, she rarely does.

Subplots concerning Tracy's hair throughout the story is different in each incarnation:

In the 1988 film, while Tracy was in jail, some inmates ironed her hair.

In the Broadway musical, her hair was deflating, but did not deflate completely.

In this film, Tracy's hair still deflates, but does deflate completely.

In the original movie Tracy is sent to special ed instead of detention, where she meets Seaweed.

The "Tilted Acres" riot is absent in the 2007 film.

Amber's father, Franklin, is completely absent in the 2007 film, and explained to be dead. (Also hinted to be killed by Velma)

In the original film, Penny's father was visible; the 2007 version has him in jail, after Prudy mentions that he should "be released" soon.

In the original film, Amber's mother has no connection to The Corny Collins Show other than her daughter. In the 2007 film, she is station manager.

Also absent from the 2007 film is the "Beatnik Chick" and her boyfriend; in the original film they were played by Pia Zadora and Ric Ocasek respectively.

The original film featured songs by real bands of the 1962 era. The 2007 film featured no songs of the era, only the musical's songs.

The "pre-teen" day is eliminated from the 2007 film.

Hairspray has managed to impress critics and box office sales alike.

Hairspray has garnered many positive reviews from critics such as Roger Ebert, The New York Times, and The Boston Globe. The film is one of the top picks on Metacritic, with an average of 81. It scored a 93% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, also indicating excellent reviews. The movie has garned an average rating of 8.1 stars out of 10 on The Internet Movie Database, also known as IMDB.com. The film's IMDB.com score joins hundreds of other movies with some of the highest ratings ever recorded on the site.

"The best and most entertaining movie adaptation of a stage musical so far this century - and yes, I’m including the Oscar-winning 'Chicago.'"
—The New York Post

"In its entirety, Hairspray has the funny tilt that only a director-choreographer like Shankman can give to a movie."
—The Baltimore Sun

"A great big sloppy kiss of entertainment for audiences weary of explosions, CGI effects and sequels, sequels, sequels."
—New York Daily News

Ebert gave the film 3.5 stars out of 4, saying that there was "a lot of craft and slyness lurking beneath the circa-1960s goofiness".

Hairspray earned $27.5 million in its opening weekend, behind I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. This was the biggest opening weekend on record for a movie musical. In its second week in theaters, the film came in third place with $15.5 million.

After one week of release, Hairspray has made over $49 million in its North American release, and has raked in over $4 million overseas. As of July 27, 2007 the film has made $53,142,369 worldwide.

Hairspray-related books available for purchase includes Hairspray: The Movie Musical, a photo/essay collection, the Hairspray Movie Photobook, a similar collection for younger readers, and a junior novelization of Hairspray by Tracey West. The later two books were published on June 21, 2007; Hairspray - The Movie Musical is set for publication on August 7. Other Hairspray products include fashion and singing dolls (out July 30), calendars (out August 6), and "Ultra Clutch" brand hair spray (a fictitious brand from the film) created by Sebastian Professional. Soundtracks purchased exclusively at American store chain Target contain special "fan packs" with trading cards of the cast. Also planned is a line of Halloween costumes based on some of the main characters.