Fans of the hit Broadway showWickedwho have been awaiting the long-anticipated film adaptation will need to wait even longer, as Universal has pushed back production yet again on this beloved tale. Filming was to begin in Atlanta in March 2022, but now the start of production has been pushed back even farther to June and even further away from Atlanta, now being filmed in the U.K. The delay is thought to be brought on in order to allow filmmakers more time to get the newly-built Sky Studios in Elstree up and running.Wicked, in fact, will be the very first production to use the new stages at the studio.
This delay has been the latest in what has been snag after snag for the incredibly popular musical turned movie. Universal has been in development onWickedsince 2004, only a year after it made its huge Broadway debut which launched to generate more than $1 billion in ticket sales.
When Colliderspoke with directorJon M. Chu, he expanded on how directingIn The Heightsprepared him to tackle another movie musical:
“We’re in the beginning stages of Wicked. However, I think the philosophy of what musicals mean to me personally now that I have actually made a movie musical… you know, there’s theory about what movie musicals mean to me as being a watcher of movie musicals. Now that I’ve gone through it, what really has hit me is the power of music and why musicals exist in the first place when words aren’t sufficient. Nowadays, words really aren’t sufficient for what we’re going through. So for me, it’s finding the truth of each song and working our way inside out of why that exists.”
RELATED:‘Wicked’ Movie Will Reunite Director Jon M. Chu With His ‘In the Heights’ Cinematographer Alice Brooks
The musical is an adaptation of the novel by the same name, written byGregory Maguire, which tells the backstory to theWizard of Oz. The story tells of the unlikely beginnings of the friendship between Elphaba, also known as the Wicked Witch of the West, and Glinda the Good Witch. It also sheds some light on many of theWizard of Oz’s characters such as the Cowardly Lion and the Tinman, and how they got to where they were when Dorothy landed in Oz.Stephen Schwartz, who is known for Broadway hits such asPippinandGodspellas well as his work in movies likePocahontasandThe Hunchback of Notre Dame, wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway production while working with a book byWinnie Holzman, who is known for her work onMy So-Called LifeandJerry Maguire.
While fans may be bummed that the production has been pushed back even more on this sure-to-be hit film, at least we can crank up the original cast recording ofWickedand jam out to the vocals ofKristin ChenowethandIdina Menzel.
KEEP READING:A New ‘Wizard of Oz’ Movie Is in the Works with ‘Watchmen’ Director Nicole Kassell
