Wicked starring Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande

Cast: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Bowen Yang, Bronwyn James, Keala Settle and Peter Dinklage

Director: Jon M. Chu

Written by: Winnie Holzman (Based on the musical Wicked, music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, book by Winnie Holzman, from the novel by Gregory Maguire)

Producers: Marc Platt, David Stone

Executive Producers: David Nicksay, Stephen Schwartz, Jared LeBoff

Genre: Musical Event

 

After two decades as one of the most beloved and enduring musicals on the stage, Wicked makes its long-awaited journey to the big screen as a spectacular, generation-defining cinematic event this holiday season. 

 

Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights), Wicked is the first chapter of a two-part immersive, cultural celebration. Wicked Part Two is scheduled to arrive in theaters on November 26, 2025.

 

Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, stars Emmy, Grammy and Tony winning powerhouse Cynthia Erivo (Harriet, Broadway's The Color Purple) as Elphaba, a young woman, misunderstood because of her unusual green skin, who has yet to discover her true power, and Grammy-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and global superstar Ariana Grande as Glinda, a popular young woman, gilded by privilege and ambition, who has yet to discover her true heart. 

 

The two meet as students at Shiz University in the fantastical Land of Oz and forge an unlikely but profound friendship. Following an encounter with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads and their lives take very different paths. Glinda's unflinching desire for popularity sees her seduced by power, while Elphaba's determination to remain true to herself, and to those around her, will have unexpected and shocking consequences on her future. Their extraordinary adventures in Oz will ultimately see them fulfill their destinies as Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.

 

The film also stars Oscar^® winner Michelle Yeoh as Shiz University's regal headmistress Madame Morrible; Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton, Fellow Travelers) as Fiyero, a roguish and carefree prince; Tony nominee Ethan Slater (Broadway's Spongebob Squarepants, Fosse/Verdon) as Boq, an altruistic Munchkin student; Marissa Bode in her feature-film debut as Nessarose, Elphaba's favored sister; and pop culture icon Jeff Goldblum as the legendary Wizard of Oz.

 

The cast of characters includes Pfannee and ShenShen, two conniving compatriots of Glinda played by Emmy nominee Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live) and Bronwyn James (Harlots); a new character created for the film, Miss Coddle, played by Tony nominee Keala Settle (The Greatest Showman) and four-time Emmy winner Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones) as the voice of Dr. Dillamond.

 

Wicked is produced by Marc Platt (La La Land, The Little Mermaid), whose films, television shows and stage productions have earned a combined 46 Oscar^® nominations, 58 Emmy nominations and 36 Tony nominations, and by multiple Tony winner David Stone (Kimberly Akimbo, Next to Normal), with whom Platt produced the blockbuster Wicked stage musical. The executive producers are David Nicksay, Stephen Schwartz and Jared LeBoff. 

Based on the bestselling novel by Gregory Maguire, Wicked is adapted for the screen by the stage production's book writer Winnie Holzman and by legendary Grammy and Oscar^® winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz. The Broadway stage musical is produced by Universal Stage Productions, Marc Platt, the Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.

 

Wicked is now available to stream

 

Review: Defying gravity and so much more, Wicked is the first in a series of films that retell the beloved back story to the Wizard of Oz. With an all star cast and some truely magical performances Wicked the first part of the tale Elphaba (played by Cynthia Erivo) and her to find herself. With outstanding performance by Ariana Grande & Jonathan Bailey, this highly addictive musical leaves you wanting more.  Can't wait for the next movie in the series.

 

THE SYNOPSIS

 

One of the most beloved and enduring musicals on the stage, Wicked makes its journey to the big screen this holiday season as a spectacular cinematic event.

 

Directed by acclaimed filmmaker JON M. CHU (Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights), Wicked is the first chapter of a two-part immersive, cultural celebration. Wicked Part Two is scheduled to arrive in theaters on November 21, 2025.

Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, stars Emmy, Grammy and Tony winning powerhouse and Oscar^® nominee CYNTHIA ERIVO (Harriet, Broadway's The Color Purple) as Elphaba, a young woman misunderstood because of her unusual green skin who has yet to discover her true power, and Grammy-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and global superstar ARIANA GRANDE as Glinda, a popular young woman gilded by privilege and ambition who has yet to discover her true heart. 

 

The two meet as students at Shiz University in the fantastical land of Oz and forge an unlikely but profound friendship. Following an encounter with The Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads and their lives take very different paths. Their extraordinary adventures in Oz will ultimately see them fulfill their destinies as Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.

 

The film also stars Oscar^® winner MICHELLE YEOH as Shiz University's regal headmistress and Dean of Sorcery Studies Madame Morrible; Oliver Award winner and Emmy nominee JONATHAN BAILEY (Bridgerton, Fellow Travelers) as Fiyero, a roguish and carefree prince; Tony nominee ETHAN SLATER (Broadway's Spongebob Squarepants, Fosse/Verdon) as Boq, an altruistic and adorable Munchkin student; MARISSA BODE in her feature-film debut as Nessarose, Elphaba's favored sister; and pop culture icon JEFF GOLDBLUM as The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

 

The cast of characters includes Pfannee and ShenShen, two conniving compatriots of Glinda played by Emmy nominee BOWEN YANG (Saturday Night Live) and BRONWYN JAMES (Harlots); a new character created for the film, Miss Coddle, played by Tony nominee KEALA SETTLE (The Greatest Showman) and four-time Emmy winner PETER DINKLAGE (Game of Thrones) as the voice of Dr. Dillamond. The supporting cast also features ANDY NYMAN (Judy) as Governor Thropp, COURTNEY MAE-BRIGGS (Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix) as Mrs. Thropp, AARON TEOH (Artemis Fowl) as Avaric and SHAUN PRENDERGAST (Henry V) as Shiz President.

 

Wicked is produced by MARC PLATT p.g.a. (La La Land, The Little Mermaid), whose films, television shows and stage productions have earned a combined 46 Oscar^® nominations, 58 Emmy nominations and 36 Tony nominations, and by multiple Tony award winner DAVID STONE (Kimberly Akimbo, Next to Normal, The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee ), with whom Platt produced the blockbuster Wicked stage musical. The executive producers are STEPHEN SCHWARTZ, DAVID NICKSAY, JARED LeBOFF, WINNIE HOLZMAN and DANA FOX.

 

Wicked is based on the musical stage play with music and lyrics by legendary Grammy and Oscar^® winning composer and lyricist STEPHEN SCHWARTZ and book by Tony and Emmy nominee WINNIE HOLZMAN (creator, My So-Called Life), from the novel by GREGORY MAGUIRE. The film's screenplay is by WINNIE HOLZMAN and WINNIE HOLZMAN & DANA FOX (Cruella, The Lost City). The film's score is by Grammy and Oscar^® nominee JOHN POWELL (Solo: A Star Wars Story, How to Train Your Dragon) & STEPHEN SCHWARTZ.

 

The director of photography is ALICE BROOKS asc (In the Heights, tick, tick …BOOM!) and the costume designer is Academy Award^® nominee PAUL TAZEWELL (West Side Story, Hamilton). The production designer is six-time Oscar^® nominee NATHAN CROWLEY (Dunkirk, The Dark Knight). The choreographer is three-time Emmy nominee CHRISTOPHER SCOTT (In the Heights, So You Think You Can Dance) and the editor is Oscar^® nominee MYRON KERSTEIN ace (tick, tick … BOOM!, In the Heights). The hair and makeup design is by Academy Award^® winner FRANCES HANNON (The Grand Budapest Hotel, The King's Speech).

 

The visual effects supervisor is three-time Oscar^® nominee PABLO HELMAN (War of the Worlds, The Irishman), the visual effects producer is KEVIN ELAM (Interstellar, Fast & Furious 6) and the casting is by seven-time Emmy nominee BERNIE TELSEY csa (The Color Purple, In the Heights) & five-time Emmy nominee TIFFANY LITTLE CANFIELD csa (The Color Purple, In the Heights). The co-producer is JOAN SCHNEIDER (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Jason Bourne). The executive music producer is Tony award and two-time Grammy award winner STEPHEN OREMUS (Original Broadway Cast recordings for Kinky Boots and The Book of Mormon). The music supervisor is MAGGIE RODFORD (Death on the Nile, Bumblebee) and the music producer is Grammy award winner GREG WELLS (The Greatest Showman, In the Heights).

The Broadway stage musical is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, the Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.

 

THE BACKSTORY

The Origin of Wicked

In 1995, almost a century after L. Frank Baum's enduring classic, The Wizard of Oz, first hit bookshelves in the year 1900, novelist Gregory Maguire reinvented Baum's world in his bestseller Wicked. The novel, about the untold stories of the witches of Oz, set in the years before Dorothy dropped in, became a literary sensation. A few years later, in 2003, Wicked would debut on Broadway as a dazzling musical event, starring Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel. Earning 10 Tony nominations, including Best Musical, Wicked would soon become a generation-defining cultural phenomenon of its own.

 

Produced by Marc Platt and David Stone, with a book by Winnie Holzman and music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, the Wicked stage musical has played to packed houses on Broadway for more than 20 years now and has inspired SRO crowds across the globe. One of the rare productions in all of musical theater history that focuses on the friendship between two women, the musical juggernaut has earned approximately $6 billion worldwide and has become a runaway success in Japan, Korea, Singapore, Australia, the U.K., Germany, the Netherlands, Brazil, Mexico, and throughout the world. Like L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz itself, Wicked has entered our collective consciousness and has shaped our dreams and our perceptions of the world and each other.

 

On the surface, Wicked is the origin story of how Elphaba became the Wicked Witch of the West and Galinda Upland become Glinda the Good. It's a story of an unlikely friendship between two young women"one ostracized, one adored " and how the untapped power of one will reshape their lives and Oz, forever. But underneath that narrative is a story that dives into darker waters and mines deeper truths. Wicked is also a show about the quiet, insidious rise of a fascist movement that seeks to demonize the intelligent, speaking Animals of Oz, to blame them for everything wrong in society, and to destroy them by literally taking away their voices. With echoes of the rise of the Third Reich in Germany in the 1930s, Wicked explores how a sinister, charismatic leader can lie so effectively to his citizens that they will commit unspeakable acts"and betray their loved ones"out of fear and hatred. It is, in other words, a story that pierces the perceptions and sharpens the resolve of every generation, including our own.

 

For years, producer Marc Platt had been approached about adapting the stage musical for the screen. The timing had never seemed right, but when the stars aligned, Platt knew it was time to let Elphaba and Glinda soar. The film, Platt says, allows them to expand and explore the Wicked universe in a way that isn't possible on stage. "What's exciting about bringing Wicked to film is that in the making of the stage show there were many ideas, themes and stories we had to cut," Platt says. "With only so much time, we had to leave it in your mind or shortcut the story."

 

Further constraints of the theater are that the audience's gaze cannot go to all the places that the mind's eye"and therefore a camera"can. The stage can show you a world but it can't immerse you in one the way film can. "Making films allows us to elaborate on the themes of the stage production," Platt says. "Film allows us to investigate the different worlds"Munchkinland, Shiz University, the dormitories and classrooms. The dwellings where the Animals live, the wonderous Emerald City and Wizard's throne room. When we decided to make Wicked as a film, we wanted to be able to dramatize many of the elements that on stage you can't"from flying with monkeys to sweeping across Oz. These are places that only a camera can go. The films take advantage of this, opening the door to create a singular experience."

 

The film of Wicked brings Oz alive in a grand, detailed, magical way. Making Wicked as two films allowed the creative team to give audiences everything they're hoping to see and hear and feel, and more. "We created this story over two films," Platt says. "The first tells how Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the West, and the second tells how her best friend, Glinda, becomes authentically good."

 

Above all, the filmmakers wanted to give fans of the stage production everything they dream of experiencing in a film. No songs or characters were cut. No scenes deleted. The vision deepened and expanded the world. "Our job is to bring the essence of what's in the theater that is so satisfying and take audiences beyond that," Platt says. "To take the familiar but introduce them to something that goes where they couldn't imagine. Audiences will be transported to an epic world"where monkeys fly, witches take off on brooms…and magic is possible."          

 

A New Chapter Begins

To adapt the musical for film, Marc Platt turned to the trusted fellow creators with whom he had worked on the stage show: Musical comrades-in-arms Winnie Holzman, writer of the book for the musical, and Oscar^®-winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz. Both were elated to take the journey back to Oz. "For years, Winnie and I would say, 'For the movie, we should do this…'," Schwartz says. "It's been exciting us for a long time. The story of Wicked"as brilliantly imagined by Gregory Maguire and then as realized by Winnie and myself and our show collaborators"has spoken to people who have made it their own. Each of our characters is keeping a secret from the world"sometimes even a secret from themselves. That's what the show is about: revealing what's under the surface."

 

Schwartz and Holzman know each other so well, and have worked together for so long, that they can literally finish each other's sentences. "Winnie and I tell the story together," Schwartz says. "Some of it through dialogue, which is Winnie's department, and some through song, which is mine. When I was struggling with the first song for the roommates, Winnie came up with the idea of 'What if, instead of doing a love-at-first-sight song, we do a hate-at-first-sight one? In the same way that two people meet and fall in love, there's something about finding the person you hate immediately that feels as good."

 

It was through their work adapting the novel for the stage that Holzman and Schwartz discovered that the focus needed to be the friendship between Elphaba and Glinda. "As we explored this complex, intense friendship, we found it was the heart of the show," Holzman says. "It's the idea that you meet someone, and that person changes the course of your life. And it's also about two young women realizing that they want to make a positive impact in their world… and where that realization leads them."

 

This film adaptation, Holzman says, "was an incredible opportunity for Stephen and I to revisit this world. Coming back into it, we realized that there were aspects of the story that we wanted to explore more deeply, and with more nuance. When we got the go-ahead for two films, we knew we'd have the ability to keep everything we wanted to keep, and still expand certain key moments. We are telling the same story, while allowing it to blossom into something new."

 

Jon M. Chu Lands in Oz

Little could producer Marc Platt know, but the filmmaker he would ultimately hire to direct the film of Wicked, Jon M. Chu, was a longtime superfan of the stage production. Decades earlier, Chu had attended early performances of Platt's seminal show at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco before it transitioned to Broadway. "We opened it in San Francisco for a five-week run," Platt says. "Unbeknownst to me or to Jon, I was at the Curran Theatre every day of its five-week run. One day, a young Jon was also in that theater. He'd heard about this musical and showed up. So many years later, when we discovered this connection, we thought, 'This is a good marriage, this producer and this director, to this material.'"

 

During Chu's childhood in the Bay Area, his parents often took him to touring operas and regional musical theater productions. There, he found his calling, carrying his fascination for the artform into adulthood, where it would fuel his future directorial efforts"from the fascinatingly innovative Step Up series to the groundbreaking Crazy Rich Asians to the acclaimed Lin-Manuel Miranda musical In the Heights.

 

When Chu was in discussions with the filmmakers about coming aboard Wicked as its director, he told Platt, Holzman and Schwartz that he would be the steward for a world that they created. Chu thought back to what he had experienced with Wicked two decades earlier in the Curran Theater, when he, Platt, Schwartz, Holzman and Stone had all been there at the same time. "They had all been at the Curran for this new show," Chu says. "Everyone I knew was whispering about it. Even 20 years ago, it felt relevant. What spoke to me in the show was when Dr. Dillamond says, 'you're not being told the whole story.' The power of how hard change is and how complicated people are. It's prophetic what Stephen and Winnie wrote."

 

Needless to say, Chu got the gig. "Jon has a skillset as a visual director," Platt says. "But what I love the most is his heart and humanity. Wicked is a story of humanity, about people, and Wicked wears its heart on its sleeve; so does Jon. He was born to direct these films. With the brilliant creative vision of Jon, Stephen and Winnie, together, we have ventured to create a world that can only be realized on film."

 

Chu's ambition is for audiences to see Wicked through a new lens. "I want people who saw it on the stage to experience it in a way they never have," Chu says. For the filmmakers, it was crucial to populate Wicked with a panoply of distinctive artists, both behind and in front of the camera. "We worked a long time to find the perfect cast," Chu says. "We knew we needed people who could sing and act and who were a little Ozian. There's a little oddity, a bit of left-of-center to these storytellers. That's why I liked getting all these misfits together to make a movie about misfits."

 

Wicked is now available to stream