Wicked 3 Takes Flight: New Oz Movie In Development After For Good Release
Defy gravity again: Wicked 3 is reportedly in development, with a fresh trip to Oz poised to follow For Good’s release and push the hit musical’s reimagined Wizard of Oz saga into a new chapter.
So, 'Wicked: For Good' just hit theaters, and before the confetti even settles, there is already chatter about another trip to Oz. Is it 'Wicked 3'? Not exactly. But something Oz-y is brewing.
What Stephen Schwartz just teased
Composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz told The Ankler that he and longtime collaborator Winnie Holzman are already tinkering with a new Oz project. He was very clear on one thing: it is not a continuation of the Elphaba and Glinda storyline.
'Not a sequel, but an adjunct. Let me put it that way.'
Translation: think spin-off or side story set in the same world. Schwartz also nodded to Gregory Maguire having multiple Oz novels to pull from, but did not confirm they are adapting any specific book. No title, no plot, no timeline, no creative team beyond Schwartz and Holzman. Early days.
Quick franchise refresher
'Wicked' started as the 2003 Broadway musical by Schwartz and Holzman, itself based on Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel reimagining the land of Oz from L. Frank Baum's classic. And just to clean up a common mix-up: Baum's tale is best known from the 1939 film 'The Wizard of Oz' starring Judy Garland, not a 1939 novel.
Director Jon M. Chu and Universal turned the stage phenomenon into a film series. The first movie arrived last year, and the sequel, 'Wicked: For Good,' opened this week. Holzman co-wrote the new film's script with Dana Fox; Schwartz is back as composer, lyricist, and executive producer.
Who is back on screen now
- Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba Thropp
- Ariana Grande as Glinda Upland
- Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero Tigelaar
- Jeff Goldblum as the Wonderful Wizard of Oz
- Marissa Bode as Nessarose Thropp
- Ethan Slater as Boq Woodsman
- Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible
So, is 'Wicked 3' happening?
Universal and Chu have a hit franchise on their hands, so the idea of more Oz is not shocking. But what Schwartz is describing is not a straight-up Part 3. It is a new story in the same universe, with the Glinda-Elphaba arc considered complete. That 'adjunct' wording is doing a lot of work here. For now, that is the whole update: a project exists, it is Oz-set, and it is very early.
'Wicked: For Good' is now playing in U.S. theaters.