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The First Official Trailer For 'Wicked' Dropped During The Super Bowl

wicked the film
The Trailer For 'Wicked' Is Finally HereGetty Images

If you can’t get enough of bangers like ‘Defying Gravity’ and ‘Popular’ then grab your broomstick and wand because Wicked the film is on its way.

Almost two decades after the Broadway musical, based on the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, arrived in New York City the Tony award-winning masterpiece is finally coming to a cinema near you.

With a cast already set to rival Cats and a release date scheduled, we can’t wait to see what’s in store from the film's director Jon M. Chu, who is best known for directing the hit 2018 film Crazy Rich Asians.

From the release date and plot, to the cast and trailer, here’s everything you need to know about Wicked the film:

Who has been cast in Wicked?

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo have been cast in the Chu-directed feature adaptation of Wicked.

In April 2023, director Jon M. Chu shared first-look photos of Grande and Erivo as their respective characters, Glinda and the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba.

Grande can be seen dressed in an extravagant pink ball gown as she ascends a flight of stairs - a modern take on the classic Yellow Brick Road, perhaps?

The accompanying caption certainly suggests this: 'You weren't told the whole story. What happens when you veer off the Yellow Brick Road?'.

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Green-skinned Erivo is pictured wearing a black cloak and pointy hat while holding a broomstick.

Grande and Erivo previously shared posts in honour of being cast in the film.

‘Pink goes good with Green @wickedmovie @jonmchu @arianagrande, [sic]’ Erivo captioned her post, which included a picture of her looking shocked on a virtual call, a note from Grande with a bunch of flowers and a screengrab of the two on a call together.

Meanwhile Grande shared photos of her and Erivo on a Zoom call with Chu and a bunch of flowers from her soon-to-be co-star with the caption: ‘thank goodness 💘 @jonmchu @cynthiaerivo @wickedmovie’ [sic].

Grande first appeared on Broadway at the age of 15 in the role of Charlotte in the production 13. Years later, in 2016, she starred as Penny Pingleton in Hairspray Live!.

The singer has been a huge fan of Wicked for years and in 2013 performed songs from the musical for the production’ 15th anniversary special with Mika.

What is the Wicked plot?

If you don’t know the plot then let’s take you back to the beginning. In 1939 Judy Garland starred in the film The Wizard of Oz, which is based on a book by Frank L. Baum about a young girl from Kansas who flies over a rainbow, makes friends with some rather unique characters and triumphs over a really horrible witch.

In the Nineties the aforementioned author Gregory Maguire honed in on the story of the witch – more specifically the fraught relationship between the ‘Good Witch’ Glinda and the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba. The story explores their life in college together when they were friends, and how and why they parted ways to become enemies.

When will Wicked the film be released?

In April 2022, Chu announced that fans can expect to look forward to the release of two Wicked films, rather than one. Why? You may ask, to give viewers the necessary detail needed to capture the depth of the plot, songs and characters.

In an Instagram post by Chu, he said, '...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 surprises to the journeys of these beloved characters.'

So when will the first film be released? It is due for release on November 27 2024. As for the sequel, there is currently no release date.

On January 25 2024, both Erivo and Grande took to Instagram, and shared pictures to announce that filming for the first movie has finally finished, which comes as great news considering that due to the writers and actors strikes last year, shooting was temporarily put on hold.

Both actors shared a silhouette of their instantly recognisable characters. Erivo went on to thank the cast, crew and director, whilst Grande kept her post short and sweet with a caption saying, 'like a handprint on my heart.'

Is there a Wicked trailer?

The first teaser trailer for Wicked was released during the 2024 Super Bowl. Needless to say, we cannot wait.


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