Something Wicked this way comes: a film adaptation based on the book and the outrageously successful musical is scheduled for 2016.
The Wicked movie has long been in development, and a few weeks back, we were told by producer Marc Platt that the film is “still a number of years down the line.”
However, Film Divider reports that Universal is lining Wicked up for a 2016 release.
Allegedly, this was revealed when the studio presented their schedule at the annual Screen Film Summit.
If this is true, expect a lot of updates on this much-anticipated project soon, because the team will have to work fast to push the film into production.
Stephen Daldry has been approached to direct; Daldry successfully brought Billy Elliot to the big screen in 2000, so it’s a solid pick.
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West was written by Gregory Maguire in 1996. It is an unofficial prequel to The Wizard of Oz, serving as an origin story for the Wicked Witch and Glinda.
It is one of the first pieces of fiction to take the villain’s perspective, and prove that they’re just misunderstood – the trend continues to this day with films like Maleficent, Frozen, and of course the Star Wars prequels.
The Broadway musical famously starred Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, and who hasn’t tried and failed to hit the high notes of “Defying Gravity”? (…No? Just us?)
A lot of talented young women have taken on the roles, both on Broadway and the West End. It is unclear whether the movie might try to bring some of them to the big screen, or pick from the pool of A-list actresses (like Oz: The Great and Powerful did in 2013).
And will this even have songs?! If it’s mainly based on the book, probably not. Hopefully we’ll learn more soon.