Wicked Producer Gives Surprising Filming Update Amid Actors’ Strike Shutdown

The Wicked movie has been something of an enigma ever since it was first announced to be in development, with musical theater fans incredibly curious to see how the ambitious Broadway show translates onto the big screen. The live-action adaptation, which will be led by Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, has already been confirmed to be split into two movies, the first of which would debut in November of 2024. A new interview with Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz reveals just how close the movies are to coming to fruition, even as production has been paused amid the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors’ strike. Schwartz’s comments to Variety indicate that Wicked had just a few days left of shooting before the shutdown occurred.

“It’s quite frustrating in a way because we have, I think, 10 days worth of shooting to go finish all the shooting for both movies…But on the other hand, I might as well declare it, I’m in great sympathy and support of the unions that are striking,” Schwartz revealed.

This echoes comments that Wicked director Jon M. Chu made on social media on Wednesday, writing “Not done yet. Just paused until the strike is over and we can finish the last pieces of the movie. We were only a few days away from being done so we were SO close. It’s been very painful to put a halt to it all but we will be back! And we will finish properly strong when the time is right. My heart goes out to our cast and crew who were cut short of what we came here to complete together. More to come but in the meantime I’m excited to excavate what we have shot for the past year here in Oz (release date shouldn’t be affected) . It has been an extraordinary adventure… more to do. #WickedMovie”

What Is Wicked About?

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 cast will also include Ariana Grande as Galinda, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Ethan Slater as Boq, Jeff Goldblum as The Wizard, Bowen Yang and Bronwyn James as Pfannee and ShenShen, Marissa Bode as Elphaba’s sister Nessarose, Keala Settle as Miss Coddle, Aaron Teoh as Avaric and Colin Michael Carmichael as Professor Nikidik.

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 had been among the wishlist fans have had for the movie adaptation.

Why Is Wicked Two Movies?

Wicked will be split into a two-part movie saga, the first of which will arrive in December of 2024, and the second of which will arrive in December of 2025.

“Here’s what happened: As we prepared the production over the last year, it became impossible to wrestle the story of Wicked into a single film without doing some real damage to it,” Chu wrote in a statement when the decision to split it into two films was announced. “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. 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 for these beloved characters.”

Are you excited for the Wicked movie? What do you think of this new update regarding the production? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!