Everything To Know About The Wicked Movies

If you’ve been awaiting Jon M. Chu’s Wicked movie musical adaptation since it was announced in November 2021, you’re not alone — but you will need to wait longer for the full start-to-finish experience. Last spring, Chu (who recently helmed In the Heights) announced that the musical will now be a two-part Wicked adaptation, with each installment to be released one year apart.

The film stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda. They’ve pledged, in addition to Chu, “to create nothing less than an experience that honors its foundation for all the fans who’ve waited for this movie,” per the director’s statement. While waiting for the full experience will be hard, fans will be happy to discover that the first entry is coming sooner than planned. Below, see the first look images — and everything else you should know about the two-part Wicked movie adaptation.

Wicked First Looks

On April 17, Grande and Erivo shared first-look pictures of their characters on Instagram. The first on-set photos show Grande’s Glinda dressed in a flowing pink dress, while Erivo’s green-faced Elphaba can be seen holding her broomstick.

The next day, Entertainment Tonight shared a new glimpse of Grande filming on the extravagant village set created for the movies, decked out in a new take on Glinda’s pink gown and scepter. Raw videos, which have since been taken down, had shown Grande standing over a pink-and-gold throne and singing the first verse of Wicked’s opening number, “No One Mourns the Wicked,” before someone calls cut and she gets notes from the crew before her next take of the scene.

Some fans had speculated in the YouTube comments section that Grande may have been lip-syncing to Kristin Chenoweth’s original recording of the song, given how similar it sounded, potentially so her own rendition wouldn’t be leaked in advance. However, a local TikTok user who lives close to the set also posted a separate audio clip of Grande singing “No One Mourns the Wicked,” making it clear that it’s her distinctive voice.

Wicked Movies Split Into 2, Explained

So, why did the Wicked movie turn into the Wicked movies? As Chu explained in his tweet:

Here’s what happened: as we prepared this production over the last year, it became increasingly clear that it would be impossible to wrestle the story of WICKED into a single film without doing some real damage to it. As we tried to cut songs or trim characters, those decisions began to feel like fatal compromises to the source material that has entertained us all for so many years. So we decided to give ourselves a bigger canvas and make not just one WICKED movie but TWO!!!! 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 of these beloved characters.

Wicked Movies Release Dates

Though the Wicked split means you’ll have to wait even longer to hear beloved Act 2 songs like “For Good,” we do at least know when to expect each film. Chu originally said that the films would both be released a year part in December. However, on March 14, it was announced that Part 1 would actually debut on Nov. 27, 2024. The second part got moved up, too, and will now premiere on Nov. 26, 2025.

Wicked Movies Cast

As mentioned, the Wicked cast is led by Erivo and Grande, who have the blessing of a pretty important pair: Broadway’s original Glinda and Elphaba, Kristen Chenoweth and Idina Menzel, respectively. “I’m not sure if I’ve ever been this proud,” Chenoweth tweeted to Grande in November. “From the very first day I met you, you were destined for this role.” Menzel wrote that she has “so much love” for the new Wicked women on Instagram. “May it change your lives for the better forever and ever as it has for us.”

Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey, and Ethan Slater will also star. As reported by Variety in September 2022, Bailey will play Elphaba and Glinda’s love interest Fiyero,. That December, the outlet confirmed that new Oscar winner Yeoh will play Madame Morrible, while Slater, who earned a Tony nomination for playing SpongeBob Squarepants on Broadway, will portray the lovable Boq. Finally, Goldblum confirmed in March that he joined the cast as the Wizard that started it all.

Wicked Movies Plot

Based on the Broadway musical of the same name, which was based on Gregory Maguire’s novel of the same name, Wicked is a prequel to The Wizard of Oz. It revolves around the friendship between Elphaba and Glinda, and explores how each woman came to be known as the Wicked Witch and the Good Witch. As promised in Chu’s statement, the Wicked films will “[bring] even more depth and surprise to the journeys of these beloved characters.”

This post will be updated with the trailers and additional plot details as more information on the Wicked movies becomes available.