Universal Removes Wicked From Release Schedule

The COVID-19 pandemic has made a major impact on the movie industry, with countless films postponing their theatrical releases in the months to come. Universal is the latest studio to provide an updated version of their slate, which included jockeying the release date of Minions: The Rise of Gru to July 2, 2021, and Sing 2 to December 22, 2021 (via Deadline). As a result of that move, the theatrical adaptation of Wicked, which was initially set to hold Sing 2's December release date, is now off of the calendar for the moment.

For fans who have been following the Wicked adaptation over the past decade or so, this probably isn't much of a surprise. The project was initially set to be released in December of last year, but the now-infamous adaptation of Cats ultimately took over its release date. Outside of the announcement of the 2021 release date, essentially no updates have been provided about the film, which does not currently have any principle cast members.

The adaptation is expected to be directed by The Crown and Billy Elliot's Stephen Daldry, with a script from the musical's book writer, Winnie Holzman.

Wicked is a prequel to the iconic events of The Wizard of Oz, and tells the story of two unlikely friends, Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West) and Galinda (whose name later changes to Glinda the Good Witch), who struggle through opposing personalities and viewpoints, rivalry over the same love-interest, reactions to the Wizard's corrupt government, and, ultimately, Elphaba's public fall from grace.

The musical, which first debuted on Broadway in 2003, has become a beloved part of musical theater, ultimately grossing over $1 billion in total Broadway revenue in 2016. The original production of Wicked featured Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, both of whom have been among the wishlist fans have had for the movie adaptation.

"I still think that I should be Elphaba and I should just throw, slap that green makeup on me and get some CGI and Benjamin Button the shit out of that," Menzel said in a 2019 interview. "I mean I love you, Ariana [Grande], but I still am relevant here."

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