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Popular pop artist Ariana Grande and actress Cynthia Erivo have been cast as Glinda and Elphaba in Jon M. Chu’s film Wicked.
Chu was reported to have taken over the position of the film's director in February 2021 when Stephen Daldry left the project last year. The film is yet to give an updated release date.
With music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, a book by Winnie Holzman Wicked is an adaptation of the novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, and is a twist on the classic tale of The Wizard Of Oz.
Unlike the usual storyline which is told from the perspective of Dorothy Gale, the musical focuses on the relationship between the witches in the story, Elphaba is the so-called Wicked Witch Of The West, and Galinda is eventually known as Glinda, The Good Witch.
Ariana Grande plays the role of Glinda in 'Wicked'
Grande and Erivo will both return to their Broadway roots; Ariana starred as Charlotte in 13 on Broadway when she was 15, and Erivo made her Broadway debut as Celie in The Color Purple in 2015.
Grande has been highlighting herself as the newest judge on The Voice and for her marriage with beau Dalton Gomez, Grande also made her place strong to star in the film when she sang “The Wizard and I” for NBC’s A Very Wicked Halloween: Celebrating 15 Years on Broadway.
Cynthia Erivo on this September will star in the remake of Bette Middler’s The Rose, she also released her album, Ch. 1 vs. 1, Erivo is also an Oscar away from becoming the youngest EGOT recipient.
The film adaptation of Wicked was first announced in 2012 but due to several delays, it was not released. However, with the announcement of the film’s leads, a release date in a few days is very much likely.
However, If the movie can get the rest of its cast together before the end of 2021, it seems very likely for the film to begin in the first half of next year – and if that happens, 2023 would seem to mark the 20 year anniversary of the original show.
