Spoilers below.
I was convinced that the harshest critics of Wicked would not be the credentialed media writing film reviews, but the musical’s legions of fans. All around the world, for over 20 years, people have been bewitched by Stephen Schwartz’s music and the characters made popular by Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth. The expectations for the film adaptation were high, especially after the project had been delayed for over a decade.
We’ve seen how fans have reacted to remakes when it’s not what they envisioned—ranging from somewhat silly (Sonic the Hedgehog’s appearance in the “live action” film) to downright toxic (Halle Bailey’s casting in The Little Mermaid). I feared Wicked would meet the same fate. People are protective over works of art that are linked to their childhoods, not merely for the nostalgia, but because it’s part of what makes them who they are. Maybe they sang “Popular” into a hairbrush for an imaginary audience or belted along to “Defying Gravity,” even if off-key. Maybe they sang one of the songs in an audition or played it for their kids in the car. Maybe they can still remember feeling the full-body chills from first watching Elphaba take flight or Glinda enter in her bubble. Maybe they revisited the soundtrack during a rough period in one of their own friendships. Simply put: many could be disappointed if the big-budget film didn’t honor their experience.
But luckily, we don’t have to worry about that.
Director Jon M. Chu’s screen version of Wicked, starring the fantastic Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, is staunchly faithful to the stage original. No characters or songs are cut (save a few “swankified” lines), at least in this first half of the two-part film. And in fact, the adaptation was split in two because Chu and the team decided not to make any “fatal compromises.” But that’s not to say that there are no changes at all. The movie Wicked is slightly different from the stage Wicked, but in ways that expand the universe, characters, and central conflict more deeply than the fast-paced musical allows. “With more space, we can tell the story of WICKED as it was meant to be told while bringing even more depth and surprises to the journeys of these beloved characters,” Chu announced on Instagram back in 2022.
Some of that was due to the ability to stage more elaborate scenes on film, like turning “What Is This Feeling?” into a montage of Elphaba and Glinda’s rivalry, which was a smart way to show how their competitive dynamic and resentment for each other grew, from the classroom to the cafeteria to the gym. And thanks to movie magic, they can make actual magic look real onscreen. Yet, amid the big numbers and towering set pieces, the most impactful moments in Wicked are the most subtle. Tight shots between Elphaba and Glinda were helpful to show the precious, complicated bond between them.
The beauty of the film is in literally seeing them up close—specifically, their faces as they judge, comfort, and later care for each other. It reveals a new, deeper layer to their friendship that isn’t visible from the audience seating at the Gershwin Theater, no matter how good your seats are. Because of that, the screen adaptation delivered that big, musical production value and glitz while also remaining steadfastly human and emotional. In truth, that’s part of what Wicked is about: taking a closer look at something—or someone—and realizing there’s so much more to them than you originally thought. This is the case with Elphaba and Glinda, with Madame Morrible, and The Wizard. And this also rings true for Wicked lovers watching the film version. You think you love something, but the movie forces you to look again. Turns out, there’s even more to love.
Aside from Erivo’s “Defying Gravity” riff, Grande’s “Popular” key changes, and the addition of Keala Settle’s new character, Miss Cottle, here are some of the biggest tweaks and additions in the Wicked film.
The Animals
In the stage musical, the most we see of the animals’ plight in Oz is through Dr. Dillamond’s imprisonment and the wizard’s monkey army. (Shout-out to Chistory.) But the movie includes far more context about their place–and literal voice–in Ozian society.
When Elphaba is born, she is delivered by both human and animal nurses, including a bear named Dulcibear (voiced by Sharon D. Clarke). She becomes Elphaba and Nessarose’s nanny in childhood, even comforting Elphaba when she’s criticized by other kids or her own father. This change helps to explain why Elphaba is so sympathetic to the animals being persecuted when she’s an adult. It also shows how common it was for the beasts to hold human jobs and leadership roles.
That was also the case at Shiz University, where, in the film, Dillamond isn’t the only animal professor. During the number “Something Bad,” which is sung only between him and Elphaba in the stage version, he congregates with fellow creatures like a jaguar, a bird, and others on the Shiz staff. They secretly meet to discuss how some of their animal friends have disappeared or lost the ability to speak. On the first day of school, Elphaba’s powers cause a relief on the Shiz façade to crumble, revealing a portrait of animal scholars behind it, signaling that animals used to have a much more important role at the school.
We briefly see glimpses of animal life outside of Shiz too, like the animal band in the Oz Dust Ballroom, and Fiyero’s horse (who talks!).
Elphaba’s Past and Powers
In the stage musical, Elphaba endures enough ridicule at Shiz thanks to Galinda (at first) and other students, but the film shows how she was subject to that in childhood, too. During an adorable scene between young Elphaba and baby Nessarose at home, a group of children taunt Elphaba for having green skin. She becomes so emotional to the point that she unconsciously levitates rocks at her feet and launches them at her bullies.
In fact, the film has a greater emphasis on Elphabas’ supernatural powers. Aside from the accidental disturbances she causes in class, which also take place in the musical, Elphaba seems to have strange visions of the future. During “The Wizard and I,” when she sings, “I just had a vision almost like a prophecy,” she literally sees hazy images of a “celebration throughout Oz” regarding her. She doesn’t know why just yet. And while spying on Dr. Dillamond’s secret meeting with other animals, she has a vision of him in a cage, foreshadowing his kidnapping. She has that vision again later in the film.
The movie makes it clear that Elphaba is far more gifted than her peers in the realm of sorcery. (Poor Glinda can’t even turn her simple frock into a ball gown.) The reason why might have to do with a certain special book…
The Grimmerie
Elphaba’s ability to read the ancient text of spells does take place in the musical, but the film includes more backstory about the book’s significance. The only thing is, the explanation happens during a scene with such exciting cameos, viewers might understandably miss the useful intel.
To recap: Long ago in Oz, as the Emerald City players sing in the film’s version of “One Short Day,” beings known as “the magical wise ones” recorded all of their magic in a “strange and secret language” in a book that would be known as the Grimmerie. The wise ones also left behind a prophecy saying that “in Oz’s darkest hour…there will come one with the power to read the Grimmerie again.” The Wizard was believed to hold such power, but as Elphaba and Glinda find out, he does not. But Elphie does; she picked it up on the first try. Of course, the Wizard tries to coax Elphie into working for him, but she refuses, taking the book with her. As fans of the show know, she ends up using some powerful spells in act II.
Poppies and The Wizard of Oz Cues
In the film, Dr. Dillamond mentions his favorite flower is a poppy, which wasn’t in the original production. During one class, Elphaba brings him a bouquet of poppies as a gift, but Dillamond is taken away and promptly replaced with a substitute who wants to experiment on a lion cub. Elphaba gets overwhelmed with concern for the cub and, instead of setting off some kind of explosion like she does in the Broadway version, she slams down her poppy bouquet, which launches the flowers into the air, sprinkling their seeds, and sending everyone in the class into a stupor. Everyone except for her and Fiyero, that is. The little change links the film even closer to The Wizard of Oz, in which the Wicked Witch of the West uses poppies to make Dorothy and her crew fall asleep, to keep them from meeting the Wizard.
Other references to The Wizard of Oz are when the Wizard shows a city model of Oz to Elphaba and Glinda as he decides what color the main road should be. (Hm, I wonder which they choose.) The hot air balloon Elphaba and Glinda hijack as they try to escape the Wizard’s palace offers up another hint.
The Close-Ups
This might be incredibly obvious for a film, but its quiet power should not be overlooked. A key turning point in Glinda and Elphaba’s relationship is in the Oz Dust Ballroom, when Glinda stands up for Elphaba by joining her in dance. While the scene also appears in the musical, it’s a bit slower, quieter, and more intimate in the film, zooming in on Erivo’s face. Erivo lets her eyes speak, expressively widening or reddening with tears, as she conveys Elphaba’s embarrassment and, later, gratitude for Glinda’s overdue kindness. In a particularly devastating moment, Glinda gently wipes a tear from Elphaba’s cheek, whispering to her, “It’s alright,” thereby turning over a new leaf. A tiny gesture like that might not have been as effective onstage, but on the big screen, it speaks volumes. Even the quick flashbacks in the beginning of the film, when Glinda is asked about her former friendship with Elphaba during “No One Mourns the Wicked,” are effective: scenes from the Oz Dust dance sequence and Glinda resting her head on Elphie’s shoulder appear onscreen.
A similar exchange takes place during “Defying Gravity,” when Elphaba asks Glinda to come run away with her, but Glinda knows she can’t. The camera focuses on Grande’s face as Glinda fights back tears while tying a cloak around Elphie’s neck. Talented Broadway actresses have long conveyed the complexity of Glinda and Elphaba’s characters onstage, especially during this difficult farewell, but this filming choice adds yet another layer to that relationship. Now, when they sing, “I hope you’re happy now that you’re choosing this,” you can feel how painful it is for them to both admit.
The film actually could’ve used more of these quiet exchanges—or even just done less at times. Elphaba didn’t need to be zooming across the screen so much throughout “Defying Gravity”—though Erivo’s stunt work and simultaneous singing are something to behold. Some of the strongest parts of the stage performance are when Elphaba stands and delivers, basking in the belting of her big notes, whether it’s “The Wizard and I” or “Defying Gravity.” Erivo still nailed her big ending, but I wonder how much more powerful it might have been if the camera could’ve just sat still with her for a bit longer.
As big of a blockbuster as Wicked is—with its fair share of CGI and VFX, coming from a corporation that’s probably itching to turn it into a franchise, with enough brand collabs to rival Barbie’s—the film still, somehow, makes room for depth and human interactions. These rare, soft, tender moments are cherished amid the joyous sensory overload.
Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There is a 75 percent chance she’s listening to Lorde right now.