We should have seen this coming after Hamilton had the world turned upside down. John M. Chu, who directed the adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical In The Heights for film, has now been tapped to direct Wicked.
If you were not into musicals in the mid-2000s, Wicked is all about the life and times of the Wicked Witch of the West. Yes, the character from The Wizard of Oz. This re-imaging of Oz has the witch, named Elphaba in the show, as a green-skinned outcast and college student. She meets Glinda, the Good Witch, as her roommate and uncovers the harsh inequalities faced by non-humans in Oz under the rule of The Wizard. It was a smash hit, and was continuing to run on Broadway for its 17th year up to the pandemic, as well as having national tours and productions in other countries.
There’s no word as to who Universal will cast for the lead roles of Elphaba and Glinda. The roles were made famous by Idina Menzel, now best known for her role as Elsa in Frozen, and Kristin Chenoweth, best known for Pushing Daisies among a lot of other roles. However, there are also plenty of excellent actresses who have worn the mantels since their initial run. Given the Chu did not go for stunt casting in In The Heights, here’s hoping he will follow that trend into Wicked.
Winnie Holzman and composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz, who adapted the musical from Gregory Maguire’s best-selling novel of the same name, will be working on the screenplay, according to Deadline.
