Let us be glad, let us be grateful that Universal has released a behind-the-scenes feature for the Wicked movie ahead of the next trailer, coming Wednesday, May 15.
Full of behind-the-scenes footage, interviews, audition clips and movie snippets, the feature shows Wicked was a labor of love, particularly for director Jon M. Chu, Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. Chu called it the one movie he’d always wanted to do. Erivo had “never seen anything or heard anything like it” after she saw the stage musical for her 25th birthday in 2012.
Grande, a known Wicked fanatic for years, “felt an immediate bond” with the show after seeing the original Broadway cast at 10 years old. Twenty years later, she’s helping bring the fantastical tale to the big screen, and the Wicked movie is sure to be a treat if this feature is any indication.
Casting a spell to find Wicked’s witches
For any Wicked fan, being cast as Glinda or Elphaba is a dream come true, so we loved seeing footage of Chu tell Erivo and Grande they’d be Elphaba and Glinda, respectively. Was it fate that Erivo was wearing green and pink in the video call with Chu when she heard the news? Grande’s love for Glinda — a character she has loved and identified with for years, as the video shows — was evident in her call. The pop star burst into tears, saying “I love her so much. I’m going to take such good care of her,” which is a huge comfort to fans of the Broadway show.
The Wicked movie has actually brought both witches to tears. During an interview portion, tears flowed down Erivo’s face as she said, “It’s been a really long journey, and I’m grateful for it. I never thought in my lifetime that I would get to be part of something like this.”
The audition clips in the featurette have us so excited to see their Glinda and Elphaba. Elphaba’s varying levels of power are present in Erivo’s clips, while Glinda’s expressiveness shines in Grande’s. In both the movie footage and the behind-the-scenes clips, we get to see the strong dynamic and bond the witches are meant to have. From Ari leaning on Cynthia’s shoulder while watching footage to Glinda wiping tears off Elphaba’s face while dancing, we can see how they’ve each changed each other for good.
A peek at the Wicked movie’s Winkie prince
If there’s one casting that’s as hyped as Erivo and Grande’s Elphaba and Glinda, we’d say it’s Jonathan Bailey’s Fiyero. (In case you hadn’t already fallen in love with his Anthony Bridgerton like we have, prepare yourselves.) In the first look of the Wicked movie that premiered during the Super Bowl, we got to see Fiyero for maybe a second. This new featurette includes a few clips of Fiyero, including an extended one of what appeared in the first look where Elphaba embraced his face.
The Winkie prince’s shining moment is “Dancing Through Life,” and Bailey was doing way more than just dancing through in that footage. Bailey trained as a dancer before becoming an actor, and it shows! We also see him partying and enjoying drinks with Glinda at the Ozdust Ballroom and on a boat full of people — the reason for which is unclear even to those of us who are big fans of the Broadway show. Nevertheless, we can’t wait to see more of Bailey’s Fiyero in the Wicked movie. (Even if we already miss the tight white pants.)
Ozian opulence on display
As grand as the Gershwin Theatre is, where Wicked the Broadway musical has been for the past 20 years, the Wicked movie is truly bringing Oz to life, making it bigger in every possible way. This passion project featurette is so full of color, vibrancy and details — even during the darker lit scenes. From the colorful costumes to the (real) lush fields, the detailed sets and more, it looks like every little thing that appears on camera in the Wicked movie has been carefully and meticulously placed and thought of.
While the story’s colors are very much so pink and green to represent our witches — notice the updated title card at the end? — it’s refreshing to see so much color in the movie. We love the Broadway musical, but there’s a lot of green and teal in it. Just in this two-and-a-half minute feature, we see every color of the rainbow and so much more. Of course Glinda is pretty much always in pink, which is a departure from the stage version but pays homage to the Wizard of Oz film. Plus, Glinda now has so many costumes and looks that look like so much fun. Elphaba is understandably almost always in black, but she has more than two or three costumes now, each of which are unique to her and the scene(s) she’s in, allowing Erivo’s Elphaba to be one-of-a-kind and expressive.
The full trailer for Wicked: Part One isn’t even out yet, but we already feel like we’ve been changed for good!
Wicked: Part One is in theaters Nov. 27.
