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Credit: Disney
In 2003, a new musical premiered on Broadway, and it would become one of the most popular and beloved musicals of all time. Wicked told the story of Elphaba, known more commonly as the Wicked Witch of the West.
It was an incredible new take on The Wizard of Oz, a novel most people thought they knew very well. The musical shows how Elphaba went from an outcast to the “wicked witch” but makes you question just how bad someone could be and realize that there is always more to the story.
Wicked starred Idina Menzel as Elphaba and Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda, and despite how much time has passed, these roles still hold a special place in the hearts of fans around the world.
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Wicked was an immediate hit, and talk quickly turned to making the hit play into an even bigger movie. It was based on Gregory Maguire’s novel of the same name, and in 2009, he revealed that he had sold the rights to the book to Disney/ABC. The plan was to create a television miniseries based on the novel, but that never came to fruition.
Eventually, the rights to Wicked ended up at Universal, who put the film on hold in 2018. The film was once again announced in 2019 and given a 2021 release date. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wicked had to be placed on the back burner once again.
It’s been more than twenty years since Wicked made its Broadway debut, and FINALLY, this November, it will hit the big screen!
Related: ‘Wicked’ Splits Into Two Movies to Avoid “Fatal Compromises,” Gets Release Dates
The new movie will star Ariana Grande as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba. Disney fans will recognize Erivo from her role in Disney’s 2022 live-action film, Pinocchio, where she played the Blue Fairy.
Now, both women are incredibly talented, and the film’s trailers have received rave reviews. But sadly, one of its stars is dealing with an onslaught of internet harassment from racist trolls.
Recently, Universal released a new poster for Wicked, and fans were incredibly excited to see how it paid homage to the Broadway play’s poster. Grande/Glinda is seen whispering to Erivo/Elphaba.
However, some people began trying to hide Erivo’s face and edit the poster to look more like the original version. There were also memes that began going viral, asking “Is your p***y green?”
Ms. Erivo — who is a black woman — took to Instagram to address the trolls, saying that it was disrespectful to try to “erase” her from the new film. She said the hate memes were not funny, they were degrading.
This is the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen, equal to that awful AI of us fighting, equal to people posing the qyestion “is your ***** green”
None of this is funny
None of this is cute
It degreades me
it degrades us
The original poster is an ILLUSTRATION. I am a real life human being, who chose to to look right down the barrel of the camera to you, the viewer … because, without words, we communicate with our eyes.
Our poster is an homage, not an imitation, to edit my face and hide my eyes is to erase me. And that is just deeply hurtful.
Related: ‘Wicked’ Gets Blasted by Anti-Woke Mob After First Trailer Premieres
Fans swarmed the comments, supporting the actress and praising her performance as Elphaba. Multiple trailers have been released for the film, and both Ms. Erivo and Ms. Grande absolutely shine. You can watch the trailer below.
Wicked will be released in theaters nationwide on November 22, 2024. It is important to note that the movie will be split into two parts, with the second half being released on November 21, 2025. If the film is like the play, the first half will end after Erivo’s Elphaba sings her iconic song, “Defying Gravity.”
Wicked, directed by Jon M. Chu, also stars Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Ethan Slater as Boq, and Marissa Bode as Nessarose.
Will you be seeing Wicked in theaters when it releases on November 22? Do you love Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!