The land of Oz has a special place in Hollywood history, and in 2024 movie fans everywhere are going to return to that world when the musical Wicked hits the big screen.
After debuting on Broadway in 2003, Wicked earned nine Tony Award nominations and won three of them, while its original music became a hit. Now, more than 20 years later, the Oz-set story that takes place before Dorothy ever arrived is jumping from the stage to the screen in what is sure to be one of the most anticipated new movies of 2024 (and 2025 as well; we'll explain).
Here is everything you need to know about the Wicked movie.
Wicked release date
Get ready to spend the holidays with Wicked, as the musical has set a November 27 release date, which is the day before Thanksgiving in the US. That is actually up from the Christmas Day release the movie was planning originally. But that's not all.
Wicked is getting split into two movies, as shared by director Jon M. Chu on Twitter:
Special #Wicked Movie Announcement… ✌🏼🎬🧹🌸💚sent from my OzPhone: pic.twitter.com/4qPpvVD4rRApril 26, 2022
The second part of Wicked is currently scheduled for November 26, 2025. It moved up from the previously announced December 25, 2025, to avoid the premiere of Avatar 3.
Wicked plot
Universal Pictures has not released an official synopsis for Wicked as of yet, but thankfully with the show and the Gregory Maguire novel of the same name that it is based on, we know what we're dealing with.
The story of Wicked takes place before Dorothy lands in Oz, focusing primarily on how Elphaba became the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda became known as the Good Witch.
Wicked cast
Two of the most iconic roles of the stage from the last 20 years are going to be brought to movie theaters by Cynthia Erivo, who is playing Elphaba, and Ariana Grande, playing Glinda.
Erivo is an Oscar-nominated actress for Harriet (she was also nominated for Best Original Song for the movie), as well as starring in the likes of Widows, Bad Times at the El Royale, Genius, Pinocchio and Luther: The Fallen Sun. She is also a veteran of the stage, performing in shows like The Color Purple, How to Succeed at Business Without Really Trying and The Last Five Years on Broadway and in London, as well as releasing a number of solo albums.
Grande is a Grammy-winning singer and songwriter who has sold more than 85 million records in her career. She has acted in a handful of TV shows and movies, most notably Hairspray Live! and Don't Look Up, but Wicked is her biggest acting role to date.
The supporting cast of Wicked is stuffed with big names as well, including recent Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once) as Madame Morrible, Jeff Goldblum (Thor: Ragnarok) as the Wizard, Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton) as Fiyero, Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live) as Pfannee, Keala Settle (The Greatest Showman) as Miss Coddle, Brownwyn James (Lockwood & Co.) as ShenShen and Ethan Slater (Fosse/Verdon) as Boq and Marissa Bode as Nessarose, making her movie debut.
Wicked photos
Chu released the first photos from the movie, giving fans a glimpse as Erivo’s Elphaba and Grande’s Glinda:
Wicked trailer
The first look trailer for Wicked is now available online after first airing during Super Bowl LVIII. Watch directly below:
Jon M. Chu movies
Director Jon M. Chu has plenty of experience with musicals, having directed Step Up 2: The Streets, Step Up 3D, the concert movie Justin Bieber: Never Say Never and In the Heights. Chu has also directed the likes of G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Jem and the Holograms, Now You See Me 2 and Crazy Rich Asians.
Chu has also been a producer on many of his movies and a couple of recent high profile TV projects, Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration and The Company You Keep.
