WICKED Film will be split into two movies, releasing Dec 2024 & Dec 2025- Page 3

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:12pm

I think you 100% have to end the first film with DG. It doesn't make sense not to. It sets the two women against each other. But that said, how do you open Part 2? Do you give us "No Good Deed" to get us back into the movie? Act 2 starts kind of with a fizzle but I expect that in a theater since people are coming back from the restrooms and stuff, but on film it's a little different. 

[blaxx]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:17pm

henrikegerman said: "My first response was "why?"
But maybe they have something good in mind.

The libretto isn't exactly beyond improvement."

The improvement it needs is not to make it even longer.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:20pm

I hope they end it in the middle of "Defying Gravity".

"I'm the one you want! It's me! It's meeee!"

TO BE CONTINUED.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:22pm

So they're really turning this into a 5 hour, two part movie? If part 1 bombs, do they still release part 2?

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:24pm

I adore Wicked. 

But is so flawed here are a million things they could do to make it better or more fleshed out. 

Splitting it into a two part movie is nowhere on that list of a million things. 

[blaxx]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:25pm

RippedMan said: "But like what more can be explained? Girls meet. They don't like each other. They realize they like each other. The end.

Does that need two movies? Do we really need to explore Glinda's political agenda? Prob not.

But Schwartz dropped the ball with Hunchback so not surprised."

Yes, the musical's plot is so thin and accessible on purpose. The musical's development decided to turn the complex book into a simplistic and hummable Wizard of Oz prequel / behind the scenes. That is what the audiences have bought through the years.

There is no need to add or elaborate. The musical had a very rocky period of rewrites until they went for the most swallowable version they could find, why mess with that again?  

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:34pm

JUST END THIS F**KIN' MISERY THIS AIN'T F**KIN' DUNE.

I was excited about John M Chu.

I was cautiously optimistic about Ariana.

I was insanely meh about Cynthia.

I am furious they're gonna drag this nonsense into two movies. You know these ain't gonna be less than two hours each, so that means basically doubling the about of materials and draaaaaging this out over hours, literally over years.

[thommg]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:39pm

Great! Now there'll be two movies I won't go to see!

[ElephantLoveMedley]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:41pm

The only way I can possibly come to terms with this being so long is predicting/hoping that they’re going to the absolute max when it comes to production design and scenic design. The amount of detail and visual brilliance that I am going to expect from seeing Shiz and the Emerald City and Kiamo Ko on screen needs to be on, like, Avatar and Dune levels. Like, Academy Award level visuals. I am on board for anything Wicked, but if they’re really going this two-part route, I need to be visually blown away. 

[briankershawjr]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:43pm

I think people are getting upset for nothing....Give it a chance....I am totally fine with 2 movies...and if you don't like how they are doing then don't go see it, simple as that...

Others are excited...I think that Universal believes this will be a hit, so why not split it into 2 movies....

Everyone just needs to chill and wait to see how this turns out.... ( if you don't agree with me, that is okay)

[Nolan LuPone]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:50pm

What… is… with… the… dot-dot-dots?

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:51pm

briankershawjr said: "I think people are getting upset for nothing....Give it a chance....I am totally fine with 2 movies...and if you don't like how they are doing then don't go see it, simple as that...

Others are excited...I think that Universal believes this will be a hit, so why not split it into 2 movies....

Everyone just needs to chill and wait to see how this turns out.... ( if you don't agree with me, that is okay)"

You are talking about a property that has been loved, as is, for nearly two decades. People of course want what they loved on stage translated on screen. Is it that hard to understand why people are a little apprehensive about this? This is no small change. 

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:58pm

briankershawjr said: "I think people are getting upset for nothing....Give it a chance....I am totally fine with 2 movies...and if you don't like how they are doing then don't go see it, simple as that...

Others are excited...I think that Universal believes this will be a hit, so why not split it into 2 movies....

Everyone just needs to chill and wait to see how this turns out.... ( if you don't agree with me, that is okay)"

Universal thought Cats would be a hit and followed a foolish man into embarrassment.  

And people ain't gotta do ****. The idea that a 4+ hour movie of Wicked would ever be something good is laughable. It's like they've literally learned nothing from Cats.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:01pm

TheatreFan4 said: "It's like they've literally learned nothing from Cats."

True. I guess we won’t get an Elphie/Glinda Butthole cut of this film, either.

 

Updated On: 4/26/22 at 03:01 PM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:05pm

I don't think ANYONE is upset.  Surprised? Confused? Flabbergasted?   

Why would they create a press release if they didn't want people talking?  They knew it wouldn't be met with only praise and excitement.  

There is no artistic way to justify this.  If we can watch it in one reasonable sitting at a theatre, there is no way we can't do the same in a movie house - which by and large have much more comfortable seating.

I'm guessing that Part 1 will make heaps more $ than its sequel.....especially if it doesn't match expectations.  I don't wish it ill at all.

[JSquared2]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:07pm

This thread is just aching for a Jesse Tyler Ferguson dramatic reading!  Bunch of crazed fangurls losing their sh*t over a movie that hasn't filmed a single scene!

[Wildcard]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:20pm

To be fair, when the show premiered in SF, it was about 4 hours long (or it felt like it). I'm guessing they will also pad up the Dorothy section 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:25pm

Yeah I could see them splicing in some recreations of the original to show us more of the context of the story, which would be cool. 

But I think CATS proved that just because you've got a popstar (Swift) doesn't mean their fans are going to turn up. 

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:32pm

And you just know they're going to give them both at least one new song each, so it'll be Oscar eligible. 

Cut to the movie, where everyone waits over two hours now to get to Defying Gravity, and then not turn up for Part Two because it'll have been like a year and now one cares.

[Playbill_Trash]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:34pm

This thread has beaten me to two punches:

1. I 100% thought this was an April Fool’s joke.

2. Can’t wait for an extended choral version of “Dear Old Schiz” and an unplugged, acoustic “Something Bad happening in Oz”

Anyway, here’s some others:

I’m interested to see Meryl Streep milk the “many years I have waited / for a gift like yours to appear” lines into a 5 minute flashback/monologue before the wizard and I.

Has #justiceforBoq been trending somewhere? Is this a response for him to get a full song?

Hollywood script supervisor who has never seen wicked reads the first draft-“well I see the scarecrow and tinman, but why doesn’t the Lion have any lines?”

John Chu: “Great point! Let’s add 45 minutes and get the VFX fur guys on the line!”

[Jarethan]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:42pm

ATerrifyingAndImposingFigure said: "Well that’s just idiotic. I thought we were years past that terrible trend of splitting films into two. Just make a long movie!"

Greed.  They are expecting that, if it is good, this will be the movie to break the musical glass ceiling these days, in terms of box office gross.  Multiply that by two and...

OF course, it is bologna.  MFL, Sound of Music and Fiddler immediately come to mind as long musical movies that did not have to be broken into two parts.

[rattleNwoolypenguin]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:53pm

I think what’s so ridiculous here is

ya cut Something Bad, Wonderful, Sentimental Man and even What is This Feeling- You have a well paced bouncy fun popcorn at most 2 hour adaptation of Wicked which by nature has always felt like a near cousin to a Disney Renaissance musical. 

Wicked has always been a trifle with a bit more sophistication cause of Schwartz’s motifs throughout. It moves at lightning speed and the more time meditated on certain elements of the plot you start to go “wait what? Save the animals?” But what sells it all is when it starts becoming an Easter egg filled re do of the Wizard of Oz and you realize there’s a tongue in cheek element to all of it. People forget that musical is stuffed with jokes and a good 90 percent of them always land. 
 

To split this in half not only is it a disservice to the continuity of the score, it’s gonna make the plot seem much stupider. And maybe I’m in the minority here- the Gregory Maguire book is especially stupid and over indulgent. 

As well as- we have seen every single movie musical be a gamble. If this is bad, why would anyone come back and see part two? 

[ATerrifyingAndImposingFigure]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 3:56pm

Jordan Catalano said: "I hope they end it in the middle of "Defying Gravity".

"I'm the one you want! It's me! It's meeee!"

TO BE CONTINUED."

If it’s gonna be a mess, why not make it a hilarious mess

[Playbill_Trash]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 4:02pm

I hope the producers of this movie and Ariana Grande are reading the reviews of Beanie Feldstein in Funny Girl - and taking the hint.

Hopefully they’re self-aware enough to admit when a poor casting choice is not fit for a high-profile role and will avoid the scrutiny, regret, and missed opportunities before it’s too late.

Stay in your lane, let someone who can do it do it.

[James885]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 4:09pm

When I saw this, I honestly thought it was a joke. Give me a friggin break. This isn't Dune or Lord Of The Rings.

What a boneheaded decision.