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Did you know that Wicked wasn't even initially discussed to be a musical? Considering that the original novel by Gregory Maguire had already told and retold the same story since the 1900s, what better way was there than to make a different iteration altogether?
Here's what Wicked Broadway and movie producer Marc Platt remembered about the entire process and the truth as to why it took 30 years to make.
Was Wicked Really Supposed to be a Musical?
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Wicked first debuted on Broadway in 2003, which Marc Platt helmed in both the stage production and the film. In a recent interview with Screenrant, he detailed the entire process of how they had grown from a stage musical to the big screen.
"When I first read Gregory Maguire's novel, Wicked, I thought 'This needs to be a film,'" Platt recalled on ScreenRant how much worldbuilding the novel needed, which felt 'very cinematic' and thus deserved its spotlight on the big screens.
However, the deeper he went into the source material, plus with his collaboration with the renowned composer Stephen Schwartz, they came to a different conclusion.
"The Wizard of Oz felt just so relevant and interesting, and a brilliant idea. And so I started a journey developing it as a film initially, and then one day, the great Stephen Schwartz, I'd been a big fan of his since I was a kid, said, 'Why not turn this into a musical?'" Platt continued, "And I thought that's a great idea, actually."
Why Did the Wicked Movie Take 30 Years to Make?
The producer further explained that Oz felt like it was a "world that wants to sing", while also noting that mainstream audiences knew 1939's The Wizard of Oz more than the original novel, and part of its timeless appeal was its memorable musical numbers.
"More interestingly, we were trying to tell a story of two characters who present themselves as one way to the world they live in, but feel differently inside," Platt added, "In a musical, a character can sing one thing to the world that they're in, but then turn to the audience, or the camera, and sing exactly what they're feeling, and let us inside. And that's the whole key to Wicked."
However, with the demands of how much a musical production would cost and how long exactly it would take to find the perfect cast, Schwartz opted they wait for the right opportunity to strike. Specifically, by letting the fanbase grow first.
"I never felt like I had to make the movie, but I did want to," Platt concluded, "And then I realized many, many years later that the whole reason I'd actually been waiting was for Jon Chu to raise his hand and say, 'I'd love to direct these films.' And that was the greatest call I ever got."
Meanwhile, Wicked: For Good premieres on the big screens on November 21.
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