The end of Wicked sent both Elphaba and Glinda on diverging (yellow brick) roads. The final moments of Jon M. Chu’s musical epic – covering Act One
The end of Wicked sent both Elphaba and Glinda on diverging (yellow brick) roads. The final moments of Jon M. Chu’s musical epic – covering Act One of the hit stage show – saw Cynthia Erivo’s green-skinned witch flee the Wizard’s fortress, having learned of his corruption; meanwhile, Ariana Grande’s ever-pop-u-lar Glinda chose to stay in Oz, continuing on her path to become the ‘Good Witch’, while maintaining much love and admiration for her unlikely friend. In Wicked: For Good, adapting Act Two, Elphaba will rebel against the ‘Wicked Witch’ label thrust upon her. But, as Chu tells Empire, Glinda will have courageous choices of her own to make, as Oz slides towards a fascist regime.
Expect an even more elaborate characterisation from Grande this time around. “[Glinda] decided to stay, and she decided to fulfil her dreams and what she felt like she needed to do. That has grown in movie two,” the filmmaker teases. Expect a familiar glow-up for her look this time, as the plot enters Wizard Of Oz territory. “She’s now become Glinda the good; she is now with the bubble and with the wand, and everyone believes in her and is looking to her,” Chu says. “It’s everything she ever wanted, and she couldn’t be happier – yet something deep inside of her is not settled.” What is this feeling? Stay tuned.
The events of For Good will challenge all of Wicked’s characters in major ways – but if we learned anything about Glinda (or, Galinda) last time, it’s that there’s more to her under the surface than first appears. “We get to know a little bit more about Glinda, what her wound is and what made her this way, and we get to see the choices that she has to make,” Chu hints of the concluding chapter. “Sometimes it takes just as much courage to pop your bubbles – that you don’t actually have to ever pop – to become the person that you need to become.” Cue the music.
Read more about Wicked: For Good in The Running Man issue of Empire – on sale Thursday 28 August. Pre-order a copy online here. Wicked: For Good comes to UK cinemas from 21 November.
COMMENTS