Wicked’s Cast Faces A Major Challenge After How Perfect It Got It 21 Years Ago

The upcoming movie adaptation of the 2003 Broadway musical Wicked has a few challenges as the story makes its way to the big screen for the first time, but one specific aspect of the process will be under the spotlight more than others. The Wizard of Oz prequel tells the story of the fictional kingdom and the lives of the Good Witch of the North along with the Wicked Witch of the West before Dorothy entered the fray. The multi-awarding winning stage production is still hugely popular to this day, with many facets of the production receiving high praise.

The cast of the Wicked movie is composed of a mix of international superstars along with lesser-known names. Slated for a November 2024 release, the movie will debut 21 years after the Wicked musical opened on Broadway. Its stellar cast and timeless soundtrack give Wicked the chance to be one of the best movie musicals of the 21st century. However, the movie will need to tread carefully in some areas, as the original production has acquired a rich legacy over its decades-long run that the film will want to avoid tarnishing.

Idina Menzel As Elphaba & Kristin Chenoweth As Glinda Were Perfect In Wicked

Wicked’s new stars will need to prove themselves

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are stepping into the respective shoes of Elphaba Thropp and Glinda Upland for the upcoming Wicked movie. While the brief Wicked trailer makes it look like both new actors are going to do a great job, they have the unenviable task of following Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth as the originators of their characters. Even now, Menzel’s incredible voice is still strongly associated with her performance of Wicked‘s “Defying Gravity,” and Chenoweth’s wholesome Broadway performance as Glinda was exactly what the part needed. As such, Grande and Erivo have a lot to live up to.

An actor can rarely be described as irreplaceable, and the fact that Wicked‘s original leading ladies have been replaced is a testament to the fact that even the best sometimes need to step aside. Unfortunately, as great as it would have been to see them reprise their roles in the Wicked movie, both Mendez and Chenoweth have aged out of contention to play Elphaba and Glinda during their younger years.

As such, casting their successors needed to result in an actor/character match just as perfect as the first time around. With Universal only releasing a teaser trailer so far, it’s hard to tell whether this is the case, but there will be many waiting with bated breath to see how it all pans out. It’s unlikely that the studio will wait too long before releasing a longer look at the movie, so Grande and Erivo may appear in a longer trailer ahead of the film’s release.

Why A Wicked Movie With Idina Menzel & Kristin Chenoweth Never Happened

The Wicked movie was greenlit in 2012 (But no one was cast until 2021)

The original Wicked musical became a hit almost straight away. Considering the cavalcade of movies that had been adapted from stage productions in the 2000s, it’s confusing as to why Wicked didn’t make the jump to the silver screen sooner than it has. Many of Wicked‘s Broadway contemporaries, like 2002’s Hairspray and 2009’s Rock of Ages, were all being adapted for cinema while Wicked remained bound to the stage.

However, Universal finally announced in 2012 that a Wicked movie was in the works. Incidentally, the news came in the same year as the Les Misérables movie was a smash at the box office, so this could have led Universal to roll the figurative dice on Wicked. Either way, the film was caught in development hell for over a decade before Grande and Erivo were cast to lead the adaptation in 2021.

Had Universal acted sooner than 2012, then Menzel and Chenoweth could have immortalized their performances on-screen. As it stood, their ages when the movie was finally greenlit no longer aligned with their respective Wicked characters. Speaking with Cinema Blend, Menzel has voiced her sadness that she wasn’t cast as Elphaba in the movie: “I’m a little sad that I’m just older and can’t play the role, you know? And that’s the honest truth.” Luckily, Mendez has applied her talents to other areas of the movie industry, such as voicing Elsa and performing her songs on the Frozen soundtrack.

Wicked’s Movie Casting Is Still Great, Despite Having A Lot To Live Up To

Grande & Erivo have a great deal of experience

Although it’s disappointing that Menzel and Chenoweth can’t reprise their Wicked roles, their replacements are more than capable of portraying the characters. Cynthia Erivo isn’t a household name, but she has an impressive list of credits that reveal her acting and singing prowess on the stage as well as on the screen. Interestingly, Erivo has starred in two stage musicals that both have ties to Whoopi Goldberg, with the new Elphaba actor starring in The Color Purple‘s musical and a musical adaptation of 1992’s Sister Act. In short, she’s no stranger to the spotlight.

Almost everyone watching Wicked will be keenly aware of Ariana Grande’s journey. The pop superstar hasn’t just carved out a hugely successful recording career, but her acting background began at a very young age during her tenure with Nickelodeon. Despite her vast array of acting experiences, Wicked will be one of only a few movies in which Grande has starred, and the first where she has had a leading role. While she may be inexperienced in the movie industry, her soaring vocal talents make her lack of film credits seem almost immaterial.

Idina Menzel & Kristin Chenoweth Should Still Make Cameos In Wicked

The original actors for Elphaba & Glinda would be welcome additions to the Wicked movie cast

The leads from the Wicked musical may not be able to play Elphaba and Glinda in the movie, but that doesn’t mean they can’t feature at all. There are several examples in recent years of legacy actors showing up in movies and TV shows based on properties in which they made their name, and Wicked should follow their lead. For example, original Mario voice actor Charles Martinet played Mario’s dad in 2023’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and Addams Family star Christina Ricci returned to play a new character in Tim Burton’s Wednesday show in 2022.

Menzel and Chenoweth could have small roles created for them to enable them to still appear in the movie. Having the actors involved in the Wicked film adaptation would be a brilliant way to honor their contributions to bringing the story to life all the way back in 2003. However, the movie needs to be careful not to overshadow Ariana Grande and Cynthia Chenoweth as they try to establish themselves in the Wicked universe.

Source: Cinema Blend