Universal's WICKED Films - News & Discussion Thread- Page 113

[MagicalMusical]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 12:28am

The first one was indeed a masterpiece ColorTheHours048, and this second film looks to be even better to me!

I am just a little lowkey pissed Glinda isn't in pink when she meets Dorothy like both the MGM movie and Wicked book had her.

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 7:25pm

I have seen "Wicked" onstage 3 times. The OBC, the First National Tour and when the tour came back to Denver. I just "revisited" the second act this afternoon just to refresh for the movie.

 

What I would like to see fleshed out in the movie are 2 things...

Someone fill me in if I just missed it but, I am still not sure about what "worked" regarding Elphaba's actually not melting. I tried to figure it out with the shadows on the curtain but, did I miss something?

Also, we know why Glinda gives Dorothy the slippers in the "Wizard of Oz", but since the relationship between the two witches is different in "Wicked" I would like to know the reason Glinda decided to give them to Dorothy. Again, did I miss something? 

And I just assumed Elphaba turned Fiyero into a scarecrow to disguise him.

For me, these are the things I hope they really flesh out in this movie.

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 7:45pm

uncageg said: "And I just assumed Elphaba turned Fiyero into a scarecrow to disguise him.

I feel like this one is pretty well explained in No Good Deed. She put a spell on him because the other guards were about to torture and kill him for betraying them and letting her go. It was the best she could muster in that moment to save his "life" to give him a body that couldn't be "killed". 

[darquegk]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 7:47pm

The "working" was that the propaganda campaign backfired. The belief that she's so wicked she can't touch clean water enables her to fake her death and disappear from the public eye. (Remember the figures fleeing on horseback at the start of the first movie?)

The thing I need to see explained more is the timeline. The stage show is extremely vague on whether it's days, weeks or many years that pass between the end of Act 1 and the start of Act 2.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 7:56pm

Just gonna throw this out there - there are some of us on this board who aren't familiar with the entirety of the stage show so open discussion of its plot points in regards to this movie will be a little spoileriffic.

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 8:09pm

With all due - it’s been almost twenty three years. A little late for spoilers. 

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 8:21pm

ThetareFan4, agreed. I just went and read the lyrics. I had forgotten them over the past 15 years since I last saw it. And now I remember when I first saw it that it was during that song it was kind of explained. It might be cool to see his transformation during the song.

darquegk,  I will have to look at the opening to the movie again. Your explanation makes sense. Guess I just didn't catch that in the stage version. For me it was kind of not clearly explained. May have to go back and see if I catch it. Also, maybe it might get fleshed out more in the movie.

 

Thanks all for the responses!

Updated On: 9/25/25 at 08:21 PM

[John Adams]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 8:32pm

darquegk said: "The thing I need to see explained more is the timeline. The stage show is extremely vague on whether it's days, weeks or many years that pass between the end of Act 1 and the start of Act 2."

It helps to be familiar with Maguire's book. According to the book, it's about 5 years.

 

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 9/25/25 at 8:39pm

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "With all due - it’s been almost twenty three years. A little late for spoilers."

I mean, also all due it's not a book or a movie you could acquire for $5. There are significant financial barriers to see Wicked before now if you're referring to just legitimate means of watching it. 

[John Adams]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 12:02am

TheatreFan4 said: "[...] it's not a book or a movie you could acquire for $5."

Yes it is. The book can be checked out of many libraries for free, and the movie's free on Amazon Prime (if you have a subscription), otherwise it's $3.99 to rent on multiple platforms.

[MagicalMusical]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 12:36am

uncageg said: "Also, we know why Glinda gives Dorothy the slippers in the "Wizard of Oz", but since the relationship between the two witches is different in "Wicked" I would like to know the reason Glinda decided to give them to Dorothy. Again, did I miss something?"

I read the Wicked book back in 2004 or around there, but forget why Glinda gave her the shoes in there. But as seen in the trailers, Nessa can fly with them, so Glinda could know they would help Dorothy fly home. So why does she send her to the Wizard? Maybe so he would try to take her in a balloon out of Oz. He would finally leave.

Does my theory work or do people have better theories? I'd like to know, and to remember what the book said!

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 1:10am

Found this article on the shoes. I totally did not remember from the book that Glinda actually enchanted the shoes.

 

https://thedirect.com/article/wicked-glinda-dorothy-shoes-why

[Seb28]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 5:17am

I have heard that they have just finished filming 5 new scenes with Bowen Yang and Bronwyn James (Pfannee and Shenshen), who were initially not a part of Wicked "For Good", but they have added them in. They also re-shot some other scenes. This is interesting, the film will then contain scenes of characters that were shot nearly 3 years apart.

Updated On: 9/26/25 at 05:17 AM

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 6:38am

Hmmm where is Miss Coddle?

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 9:08am

MagicalMusical said: "uncageg said: "Also, we know why Glinda gives Dorothy the slippers in the "Wizard of Oz", but since the relationship between the two witches is different in "Wicked" I would like to know the reason Glinda decided to give them to Dorothy. Again, did I miss something?"

I read the Wicked book back in 2004 or around there, but forget why Glinda gave her the shoes in there. But as seen in the trailers, Nessa can fly with them, so Glinda could know they would help Dorothy fly home. So why does she send her to the Wizard? Maybe so he would try to take her in a balloon out of Oz. He would finally leave.

Does my theory work or do people have better theories? I'd like to know, and to remember what the book said!"

In the novel Munchkinland has seceded from Oz, and the shoes have become a symbol of Nessa's leadership as the head of the Free State of Munchkinland. Glinda gives them to Dorothy because she feared that their power, and the fight to get control of them, would ignite a civil war within Munchkinland. 

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 9:20am

WldKingdomHM said: "Hmmm where isMiss Coddle?"

She was part of Shiz administration. No need to see her more than we did when Galinda and Elphaba both started classes at Shiz. 

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 9:23am

WldKingdomHM said: "Hmmm where isMiss Coddle?"

…said no one, ever. 

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 9:25am

Seb28 said: "I have heard that they have just finished filming 5 new scenes with Bowen Yang and Bronwyn James (PfanneeandShenshen), who were initially not a part of Wicked "For Good", but they have added them in. They also re-shot some other scenes. This is interesting, the film will then contain scenes of characters that were shot nearly 3 years apart."

This is standard and known as “pick ups” - when they go back months (or in this case - years) and film sections they found to be missing or wanted to expand and which weren’t filmed during the principal photography stage of filming. JAWS, PRETTY IN PINK, and FATAL ATTRACTION have “pick ups” that created iconic moments in these now classic films that weren’t filmed during the original filming of these films. 

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 10:44am

Said reshoots happened 3-4 months ago as confirmed by Bowen. These pickups are rumored to be for context/flashbacks as they take place in Shiz. Cynthia and Ariana supposedly filmed at this time as well. 

Bowen and Bronwyn were always both part of For Good, they’ve just expanded their presence and arcs. 

 

[darquegk]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 10:57am

Their parts probably got beefed up because no one expected them to be audience favorites AND no one expected Wicked to be and remain as big as it was. Pfanee and Shen Shen are doing commercials now. 

With all the rumors about Universal expanding Wicked into a cinematic universe beyond Part 2, it makes sense that Pfanee and Shen Shen have been beefed up a bit to make them "those guys," the tangential but beloved comic side characters who are just unimportant enough to be able to show up almost anywhere. If you're familiar with the MCU, Pfanee and Shen Shen are the Ozian equivalent of Darcy, Agent Woo, Wong and Madisynn; the story is never about them, but they're almost always somewhere on the sidelines.

[ER765]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 11:20am

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "Bowen and Bronwyn were always both part of For Good, they’ve just expanded their presence and arcs."

Exactly what we’ve all been clamoring for. Fleshing out two unnecessary side characters who were the most grating thing in Part One. 😑

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 11:48am

darquegk said: "Their parts probably got beefed up because no one expected them to be audience favorites AND no one expected Wicked to be and remain as big as it was. Pfanee and Shen Shen are doing commercials now.

With all the rumors about Universal expanding Wicked into a cinematic universe beyond Part 2, it makes sense that Pfanee and Shen Shen have been beefed up a bit to make them "those guys," the tangential but beloved comic side characters who are just unimportant enough to be able to show up almost anywhere. If you're familiar with the MCU, Pfanee and Shen Shen are the Ozian equivalent of Darcy, Agent Woo, Wong and Madisynn; the story is never about them, but they're almost always somewhere on the sidelines."

I mean... did they? I feel more Bowen Yang has had a good year and they wanted him in more of it versus Pfanee being a break out of the first movie. Pfanee had like one funny line and I don't even recall anything from Shen Shen.

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 2:30pm

ER765 said: "GiantsInTheSky2 said: "Bowen and Bronwyn were always both part of For Good, they’ve just expanded their presence and arcs."

Exactly what we’ve all been clamoring for. Fleshing out two unnecessary side characters who were the most grating thing in Part One. 😑"

Oh, calm down. They were seldomly used as comedic plot devices, just as the characters are in the musical. Elphaba doesn’t get the hat in either medium without them, they are needed so Glinda actually has hype and popularity (or enablers), and they each had less than ten lines. They barely had enough of a presence to be “grating” in a three hour movie. 

[ER765]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 2:43pm

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "ER765 said: "GiantsInTheSky2 said: "Bowen and Bronwyn were always both part of For Good, they’ve just expanded their presence and arcs."

Exactly what we’ve all been clamoring for. Fleshing out two unnecessary side characters who were the most grating thing in Part One. 😑"

Oh, calm down. They were seldomly used ascomedicplot devices, just as the characters arein the musical. Elphaba doesn’t get the hat in either medium without them, they are needed so Glinda actually has hype and popularity (or enablers), and they each had less than ten lines. They barely had enough of a presence to be “grating” in a three hour movie."

I am…perfectly calm. They don’t need to be in the movie the entire time in order to be grating. It’s called a difference of opinion and I’m hardly the only person who feels that way. I found them grating and don’t need their characters to be “flushed out” any further. You clearly didn’t and you’re open to it. It’s not a big deal. Next. 

[Kad]

Posted: 9/26/25 at 2:45pm

Yang in particular got big responses from the audience both times I saw the first part. Their total screentime was- what? Five minutes, maybe?