Posted: 2/12/19 at 11:36am
JoshTodos said: "This is too funny.
Ariana Grande is an amazing singer and actress"
So you skipped Hairspray, then?
Posted: 2/12/19 at 12:00pm
TheSassySam said: "I wonder if the originals will be placed in the film somewhere. Kristin as Madame Morrible?"
Not Morrible, but they'll probably be involved in some capacity.
I actually think the likelihood of Meryl Streep playing Morrible is pretty high right now, because she's worked with both Stephen Daldry and Marc Platt, and these cameo performances in high-profile movies help her retain some box-office clout.
Posted: 2/12/19 at 5:21pm
Posted: 2/13/19 at 6:33am
Please keep Lady Gaga, Lea Michele and Ariana Grande away from the movie. They can sing, they can act, but not all of them can do all three. Plus they can cast names in roles like Boq, Nessa, The Wizard, Madame, Fiyero, without resorting to what one might call...could you call this stunt casting? I just really want new names for this movie. But also....I feel like a few years ago we got a release date for a movie (which obviously didn't happen) so I'll believe this when it happens?
I say have an open call or do what they did for Hairspray-cast an unknown!
Posted: 2/13/19 at 9:45am
They can sing, they can act, but not all of them can do all three.
That's only two.
I would love it if there were no pop stars attached to this project at all.
JoshTodos said: "This is too funny.
Ariana Grande is an amazing singer and actress"
So you skipped Hairspray, then?
Seriously. She had no sense of character, setting or comedic timing and she only sang in her personal pop style. If all it takes to be "amazing" is to remember your lines and lyrics, then that adjective needs to be permanently removed from the English language.
Posted: 2/13/19 at 10:09am
This film adaptation has been in turnaround since 2012 and this is the second time Universal has given a feasible premiere date a few years out (last done in 2016, for this year).
I'll believe it when we have more concrete information.
Posted: 2/13/19 at 10:16am
Mister Matt said: "I would love it if there were no pop stars attached to this project at all."
Same here.
Posted: 2/13/19 at 10:44am
I personally think Gaga, while a strong singer and actress, may not be the best for Elphaba. But then again, I could see her in a smaller role. Say, a funny cameo to make the audience go "Oh it's her!" But as the lead? I don't see it.
Posted: 2/13/19 at 11:04am
SomethingPeculiar said: "TheSassySam said: "I wonder if the originals will be placed in the film somewhere. Kristin as Madame Morrible?"
Not Morrible, but they'll probably beinvolved in some capacity.
I actually think the likelihood of Meryl Streep playing Morrible is pretty high right now,because she's worked with both Stephen Daldry and Marc Platt, and these cameo performances in high-profile movies help her retain some box-office clout."
No. Bette Midler: Madame Morrible. 'nuff said.
Posted: 2/13/19 at 11:59am
If they going to go star casting route, I'll say I'm Team Gaga and it's not an idea I was for even a year ago, but now...yeah I'd be for it. No Grande or Lea...I don't have any faith in Grande's acting abilities, girl needs SERIOUS training if she were at all to be considered for this, but I don't want her anywhere near it anyway. Lea...I feel like would be too obvious of a choice, plus I haven't been able to put my finger on it but there's something about her doing this role that I feel like I'd find detestable. I'm honestly not a fan anyway, never have been, so I am a bit biased...
But for reasons already mentioned here, I doubt Gaga will happen. But lets pretend for a sec. As for her acting, HER, I have faith in. Gaga has proven she's nothing if not the consumate artist who devotes herself to any project she does and lucky enough to be choosy with projects she cares about since she's, well...Gaga. She'd do the work necessary to up her acting for it. That pic is FIERCE...like, seeing that now totally makes me want her to do it, what a coup it would be and I can't imagine she won't be courted for it by the creatives, but considering her Vegas residency will run who knows how long, I doubt she'll want to be pegged as just a musical actress/singer, etc. and everything else, yeah I'm not gonna hold my breath.
Overall, I'd rather them cast the two girls with REAL chops, that goes without saying for us all, but this film will do fine, star casting or not. But we know there's alway star casting in any film, so star cast the supporting roles. Leave the leads to those with the chops and they can say the "discovered" them. If the West Side Story film can do it, so can this.
Posted: 2/13/19 at 12:15pm
Posted: 2/13/19 at 3:28pm
Posted: 2/14/19 at 12:42am
Call_me_jorge said: "Jennifer Hudson was definitely still an unknown at the time dreamgirls came out."
except she definitely was not unknown to the american public because of her time on American Idol
Posted: 2/14/19 at 11:15am
gypsy101 said: "Call_me_jorge said: "Jennifer Hudson was definitely still an unknown at the time dreamgirls came out."
except she definitely was not unknown to the american public because of her time on American Idol"
Someone singing on a reality TV show is still an unknown quantity as an actress.
Posted: 2/14/19 at 11:39am
By the time this film gets made -- if ever -- Gaga will be mid-30s. A little long in the tooth, no? Unless we're looking at a repeat of the "Grease" film, in which everyone was too old.
Posted: 2/14/19 at 11:40am
Elphaba isn't exactly Hamlet. Gaga would be more than capable of acting the role.
Posted: 2/14/19 at 11:46am
I'd guess the time frame for WICKED spans about a decade. So I'd imagine the characters are about 19 at the beginning of the story and close to 30 by the end. I mean I never thought of "The Wicked Witch of the West" or "Glinda" as seen in the WIZARD OF OZ to be women in their early 20s.
I really don't see a problem casting actresses who are in their late 20s in these roles. I'd actually fear if they cast ladies who are two young, you're not going to get the richness of the story in the second half of the film. And they can do a lot with post production obviously to make them look a little younger in the beginning if necessary.
Posted: 2/14/19 at 11:53am
I'm by no means an expert on the show, but I never got the sense that the story covers a decade. Unless you're talking about what it feels like for the audience. (Can you guess I'm not a big fan?)
Posted: 2/14/19 at 11:55am
Updated On: 2/14/19 at 11:55 AM
Posted: 2/14/19 at 12:08pm
Well the book absolutely covers a decade, but its possible the musical condenses things. But I stick by my thought that if this is about a friendship that lasts 3 years there isn't quite the pathos. I mean, isn't WICKED basically BEACHES with green make up? And that covers eons.
Posted: 2/14/19 at 12:09pm
Ariana Grande will not star in this movie; I'd put money on it.
Rumer Willis! Ooooooh Mike!!!! What a good suggestion!!!
Posted: 2/14/19 at 12:17pm
I third Rumer Willis. She's very talented and needs to be given a big break. She works her butt off and doesn't cash in on her parents success. She has worked hard on her voice and it shows. I love her.
Anna Kendrick can still pass as a teen. She'd make a bankable Glinda.
Posted: 2/14/19 at 12:40pm
MikeInTheDistrict said: "I think WICKED is a bit off-brand for Gaga. She seems like she might thumb her nose at something so mainstream. She seems to mostly attach herself to projects with a bit more edge and on the fringes."
She's literally a pop star who writes mainstream hits, and her brand is based on appealing to outsiders, so not sure about this interpretation...
Posted: 2/14/19 at 12:59pm
QueenAlice said: "Well the book absolutely covers a decade, but its possible the musical condenses things. But I stick by my thought that if this is about a friendship that lasts 3 years there isn't quite the pathos. I mean, isn't WICKED basically BEACHES with green make up? And that covers eons."
It's been years since I've seen Wicked, but I feel as though the musical adaptation's timeline is very vague. It certainly doesn't feel like years and years go by. The first takes place entirely during presumably their first year at school, and then for the second act we skip ahead by an undefined amount of time.
