The long-gestating film version of highly popular musical “Wicked” from Jon M. Chu is finally making progress. The novel by Gregory Maguire tells the tale of how “The Wizard of Oz“‘s Wicked Witch of the West came to be. It was massively successful as a Broadway musical. The plan is for (at least) a two-part film, detailing the lives of the Wicked Witch, Elphaba, and Glinda the Good Witch. The big news now is that Jeff Goldblum may play the part of The Wizard.
Goldblum possibly joining the cast comes a month after “Bridgerton” star Johnathan Bailey joined the film. Bailey will play the part of Elphaba’s love interest, Fiyero. Ariana Grande will star as Glinda, and Oscar nominee Cynthia Erivo will be Elphaba. So it’s safe to say these films are bursting with an all-star cast.
If you didn’t know, Goldblum is an accomplished jazz musician. His band, The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra, recently released a new album.
The decision to create not one, but two films for “Wicked” comes from the wish to expand the story. The musical covers the most important plot points, but two films allows for weaving in other details that add more depth.
“With more space, we can tell the story of ‘Wicked’ as it was meant to be told while bringing even more depth and surprise to the journeys for these beloved characters,” Chu explained when the project was first announced. It’s not a bad idea. Given the run time of today’s films gives them breathing room to enrich the world of Oz and the characters within.
Universal has dated the films with Christmas of 2024 and 2025 release dates. We’ll of course let you know what we hear about this and other news.
