What is this feeling? After years of speculation, more casting rumors than Oz’s population of flying monkeys, a production ripe for tabloid fodder, and a massive marketing and promotion machine worthy of a wizard himself, Universal’s epic musical Wicked has finally walked the yellow brick road that leads into theaters.
On Thursday night the first official screenings unfolded around the US, including at New York City’s AMC Empire 25, the multilevel cathedral to cinema just off Times Square. It proved to be perfect moviegoing weather outside: absolutely miserable with hard, cold rain. Inside, there was a palpable energy with superfans lining up for one of the theater’s whopping 32 screenings of the film to handle demand, with box office tracking estimating the movie will “win over the world” with a massive global opening set to hit about $200m (the film made over $19m in US previews last night, not far off Barbie’s $22m in 2023).
Audiences are no doubt encouraged by the movie’s reviews. Much like gazing at the sparkling Emerald City itself, critics seem to be in universal awe. “If it feels like they made the best Wicked movie money could buy,” said the Associated Press’s Jocelyn Noveck. “Well, it’s because they kinda did.” The Guardian’s own Peter Bradshaw marveled, “What an enjoyable spectacle it is,” while Vanity Fair’s Richard Lawson went so far to say the film stands as an “unreproducible, lightning in a bottle convergences of director, stars, craftspeople, and high-status material”.
Gabby and Rachel, friends from Brooklyn who trekked to this AMC despite the windy downpour, wore pink and green, a play on the film’s prominent colors. “We’re excited, but we’re not superfans,” they pointed out, noting a desire to participate in a cultural moment akin to Barbie. “We’re here for the Twitterness of it all.”
Meanwhile, Travis from nearby Queens showed up dressed in a witch’s hat and black mesh top and shorts. “I remember I saw the musical in previews when I was in eighth grade when nobody knew what it was or what it was going to be,” he said. “I’ve probably been insufferable because I’ve been listening to the soundtrack non-stop. I couldn’t be more thrilled.”
It’s all not for a lack of trying. Stephen Schwartz’s opus first premiered on stage back in 2003, and the 1995 novel he based that on (Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West) was originally going to be a movie itself. By 2012, Universal came on board with an original release date of 2019. That was shifted, then the pandemic didn’t help things move along any more quickly.
After Jon M Chu (known for Crazy Rich Asians and his adaptation of In the Heights) was announced to direct in 2021, the show’s diehard fanbase waited with bated breath for casting news as the film found itself as one of the buzziest projects in Hollywood. Lady Gaga, Shawn Mendes and even Jennifer Lopez are all rumored to have been vying for roles.
The film-makers wound up settling on a potent duo: in one corner is Ariana Grande, the pop star who put her music career on hold for the role of Glinda, originated by Kristin Chenoweth. “When something once in a lifetime, like this, happens, every single second counts,” Grande said in a recent interview of her decision to put all of her musical eggs in the Wicked basket.
In the other is Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, originated by Idina Menzel. At the time of her casting, Erivo, who was perhaps best known for her Tony-winning role in The Color Purple as well as her eponymous turn as Harriet (Tubman), said she didn’t even think she’d be considered in the first place. “Historically, Black women have never really been seen for the role,” she recently said. “If they have, they haven’t gotten the role, and if they do, they usually are the alternate or first cover.”
The combination of Grande and Erivo has also energized the film’s aforementioned, all-encompassing press blitz which not only featured a much-talked about Super Bowl spot (the public’s first sneak peak) but collaborations with brands such as H&M and REM Beauty as well as Wicked-branded Rice Krispie treats, Betty Crocker mix and even Walmart’s curious Wicked macaroni and cheese, which teases a mystery color (naturally, pink or green). Here at the AMC theater, not only were there branded Wicked popcorn buckets, but audiences could also slurp down an Enchanted Green Apple Icee inspired by the film.
That’s not to say there were some awkward moments along the way, from Erivo’s admonishment of a seemingly innocent fan-altered poster (“This is the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen”) to the tabloid fodder concerning Grande and co-star Ethan Slater’s scandalous on-set romance. Then there’s the tragedy that some fans have been, gasp!, singing along at advance screenings, prompting warnings from theater owners.
Inside the theater for my 7pm showing, after previews the lights went down for a custom welcome package from the Wicked cast as the audience cheered. “No singing, no wailing,” Grande and Jeff Goldblum, who plays the Wizard, could be heard saying. Naturally, they applauded again for Nicole Kidman’s viral ode to film (“Somehow, heartbreak feels good in a place like this”).
Finally, after 21 years of anticipation, the film began and a title card eventually appeared: Wicked: Part One. Yes, there’s another film flying down to theaters in exactly one year from this day; a polarizing choice that screamed money grab to some and “the more, the better” to others. For the superfans I spoke to, everyone was well aware, and pleased, there would be no final resolution by the end of its 160-minute runtime. While audience members at my screening dutifully followed the no-singing rule, they did clap and hoot vociferously after almost every musical number and throughout a set of surprise cameos.
So what did the diehards think after the screening? “Ten out of ten,” said Travis, still in his black witch hat. John, another fan from New York, agreed. “I think they nailed it from top to bottom. I think it’s better in some ways than the musical.”
And in case audiences didn’t get enough, venturing to the subway underneath the theater you’ll find that Universal Pictures even teamed up with the MTA, with the entrance plastered entirely with pictures of the cast. Only 364 days until Part Two.
