Fans of the musical Wicked have a reason to get excited. The first images from the Wicked movie adaptation have been released. Jon M. Chu, the movie’s director, shared the images on Instagram with the caption reading, “You weren’t told the whole story. What happens when you veer off the Yellow Brick Road? FIRST LOOK of the #WickedMovie … currently in production in Oz.” The images feature the movie’s stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, who are portraying Elphaba (a.k.a. the Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda the Good Witch, respectively. While the images are dark with both actresses shot at a distance, the images are sure to get fans of the long-running musical Wicked excited for the movie.
‘Wicked’ Images Tease Long-Awaited Movie
Wicked is celebrating 20 years on Broadway this year, and attempts at adapting the musical into a movie have been going on ever since it started. The musical gives a backstory to the classic 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz in which the two witches enter University together and go from bitter rivals to best friends. It also paints the movie’s original villain in a more positive light, demonstrating how family neglect and mockery of her green skin have made her an outcast. Wicked was one of the earliest examples of the “villain origin story” genre in movies like Maleficent, Frozen, and Cruella. With its compelling story and iconic songs like “Defying Gravity,” it’s no surprise that musical fans have been waiting eagerly for a movie adaptation of Wicked.
To capture the style and format of the Broadway musical as much as possible, Wicked will be a two-part movie. The first part is still in production, and it is set to be released on November 27, 2024. The second part is expected to release sometime in 2025. These images will have to hold fans over until we get an actual trailer.