Wicked (also known as Wicked: Part One) is an upcoming musical fantasy film directed by Jon M. Chu from a screenplay by Winnie Holzman and Stephen Schwartz. It is the first of a two-part film adaptation of Holzman and Schwartz's stage musical Wicked, which is based on the 1995 novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire and characters from the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum and its 1939 film adaptation. The film stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, with Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Jeff Goldblum and Michelle Yeoh in supporting roles. Set in the Land of Oz, the film revolves around Elphaba, a green-skinned woman, and explores the path that leads her to become the Wicked Witch of the West.
In 2012, Universal Pictures announced the film's development with Marc Platt as a producer. After a long development and multiple delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chu was hired to direct, with Erivo and Grande cast in their respective roles in 2021. Principal photography began in December 2022 in England.
Wicked: Part One is scheduled for release on November 27, 2024, while Wicked: Part Two will be released on November 26, 2025.
Premise
The story of how a green-skinned woman framed by the Wizard of Oz becomes the Wicked Witch of the West.
Cast
Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba Thropp, a young woman born with green skin who later becomes the Wicked Witch of the West. Ariana Grande as Galinda Upland, a popular young woman who later becomes Glinda the Good. Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero Tigelaar, the Winkie prince who meets Elphaba and Galinda at school. Jeff Goldblum as the Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Ethan Slater as Boq, a Munchkin in love with Galinda. Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, the headmistress of Shiz University. Marissa Bode as Nessarose Thropp, Elphaba's wheelchair-using younger sister in love with Boq who later becomes the Wicked Witch of the East. Bowen Yang as Pfannee, one of Galinda's college friends. Bronwyn James as ShenShen, another of Galinda's college friends. Keala Settle as Miss Coddle, a new character created for this film. Aaron Teoh as Averic, Fiyero's friend. Colin Michael Carmichael as Professor Nikidik, a professor at Shiz University. Adam James as Glinda's father, another new character created for this film.
Production
Development
In 2003, the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West was adapted as the Broadway musical Wicked. The musical was produced by Universal Pictures' stage division and directed by Joe Mantello, with musical staging by Wayne Cilento. The Broadway production has inspired long-run productions in Chicago, London, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, as well as Germany and Japan. It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning three, and is the 4th longest-running Broadway show in history, with over 7,500 performances. The original Broadway production starred Idina Menzel as Elphaba and Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda.
In a 2009 interview, Maguire stated that he had sold the rights to ABC to make an independent non-musical TV adaptation of Wicked. It would not be based on Holzman's script. On January 9, 2011, it was reported by Entertainment Weekly that ABC would be teaming up with Salma Hayek and her production company to create a TV miniseries of Wicked based solely on Maguire's novel. No further information, such as casting, had been revealed yet.
Chenoweth and Menzel were mentioned as possible film leads. Lea Michele and Amy Adams were also rumored to be potential leads. Potential writers included Winnie Holzman and Stephen Schwartz, while J. J. Abrams, Rob Marshall, James Mangold, and Ryan Murphy were mentioned as possible candidates for director. In December 2012, following the success of Les Misérables, Marc Platt, also a producer of the stage version, announced the film was going ahead, later confirming the film was aiming for a 2016 release. After a long development, Universal announced in 2017 that the film would be released in theatres on December 20, 2019, with Stephen Daldry directing.