Nearly 100 years later, cinema is still taking us to the wonderful world of Oz – and the latest trip there isn’t to tell the usual Wizard Of Oz story, but to peek behind the curtain on some of its most iconic characters. Get ready for a massive screen adaptation of hit stage musical Wicked, based on Gregory Maguire’s novel which provides a sympathetic twist on the origin of the Wicked Witch Of The West – spinning the familiar mythology in all-new ways. The big-screen version comes from director Jon M Chu (no stranger to musicals, having adapted In The Heights), boasting Ariana Grande as its Glinda, and Cynthia Erivo as its green-skinned Elphaba – sending the duo off to Shiz University (no, really) where they’ll become the best of frenemies. Watch the extended trailer here:
There’s plenty to digest there – this is a super-sized sneak peek, revealing a whole load of plot, as Glinda and Elphaba enter Shiz’s halls of learning, go off to meet the Wizard (played here by Jeff Goldblum), and are set down very particular paths. And curiously, while the trailer features snippets of the musical’s most famous numbers (‘Defying Gravity’ and ‘Popular’), it remains another major Hollywood movie that isn’t necessarily broadcasting itself as an all-out musical. Also somewhat obfuscated? That Chu’s adaptation will, in fact, be two movies, shot back-to-back – this first film will arrive in cinemas in November, with Part Two set to land a year later in November 2025.
Still, there’s plenty to look forward to here. It’s an understatement to say that Erivo and Grande have serious pipes; there’s a reason why Oz remains one of the most iconic worlds ever to grace the cinema screen; Chu has previously proved masterful at bringing energy and emotion to big-screen musical numbers; the lavish production values look suitably sparkling; and, as the trailer makes very clear, the film also boasts a talking goat. What more could you ask for?
Will Wicked prove a box-office smash? Will audiences be caught off-guard by it being a musical, and a two-parter? Can it wrangle the magic of the stage version into movie form? We’ll find how pop-u-lar it ends up being on 27 November.