Cynthia Erivo Teases What to Expect in Wicked, Part 2

Film and theatre industry members got a special NYC screening of Wicked November 12, which was followed by a panel moderated by Vanity Fair reporter Chris Murphy, and featuring the film's stars, director, and producer sharing behind-the-scenes stories from making the film. One of the questions asked was what can audiences expect from the second part of Wicked, since the first film ends at "Defying Gravity," the stage show's first act finale.

"Well, we've only really just begun to sort of crack open the relationship that these two women have," answered Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba opposite Ariana Grande as Glinda. "They have such a long way to grow, and they have more heartbreak, they have more love, they have more learning to do. I think that their darkness is explored. They grow and they grow up, and what that means to them is very different to what you see here [in Part One]. And I'm really excited for everyone to see that sort of exploration. We were sort of giving carte blanche in this second piece, to really just stretch our wings." She then added, "What I want to do is crack that open just a little bit so that you could see the whole human being, not just the emblem for what she has."

Fans of the stage show Wicked, on which the film is based, will understand what Erivo is hinting at. Wicked Part One will be released in movie theatres November 22 while Part 2 will be released November 21, 2025.

At the same panel, the film's team also shared some behind-the-scenes stories from the making of the film. One notable story, that had everyone on the stage laughing, was Jeff Goldblum (starring as The Wonderful Wizard of Oz) saying he recorded a one-man version of Wicked, where he did all the parts. Turning to the film director Jon Chu, Goldblum said, "I devoted and worshiped the material but I kind of tinkered with it. And what I had done when I first saw you, because I knew you were busy, [was] I recorded everybody else's parts. And I did my whole part, both shows I think, to show you my current thinking. And you said, 'Good good good.' And then called in the women a couple of days later. Maybe then you said, 'Do everything you were doing. Just go along with him. Go along with him.'" He ended his anecdote, which by then had the entire room laughing, by thanking Chu for "cutting" all of his ad-libs on set into "something that looked okay."

Another tidbit that was shared was how the film's producer Marc Platt advocated to Universal Pictures to keep the sets and effects practical, instead of relying on CGI to create a computer Oz. "To these ladies, specifically, from the very beginning, they wanted to create from the inside out," Chu said, gesturing to Erivo and Grande. "And they wanted to create real characters, not stereotype of some sort. And that means that Oz has to be real." He then added that everything, from the Wizard of Oz head that moved to Munchkinland, were built on real sets. Grande added, "I walked in on a munchkin taking a nap. In Munchkinland! Inside the munchkin hut!"

Said Platt: "It was very moving for me, sort of being the parent of the group, and from the beginning all the way to now, to appreciate every day these folks who come to work led by this man," he gestures to Chu, "And say, 'We have a legacy to fulfill. We have people who love these characters and love this world and films that have been made many, many years ago that people love. And this is a legacy we have to step into.'"

Find tickets at a theatre near you at WickedMovie.com. Pre-orders and pre-saves are also now available for the film's soundtrack album, which will also release November 22.