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Warning: This story contains spoilers from the film Wicked: Part 1 and Wicked the Broadway musical. Time to spend one short day in the land of Oz. With the film adaptation of Wicked finally making its way to movie theaters, fans might be curious to know what changes were made in taking the long-running Broadway hit from stage to screen.
The main difference? Fans will only get to see half of the musical in Wicked: Part 1 , with the sequel Wicked: Part 2 due in theaters next year (as of now, the release date is Nov. 21, 2025). The current film covers act one of the Broadway musical, with the runtime of Part 1 almost as long as the entire stage show.
However, the longer runtime has given filmmaker Jon M. Chu a chance to expand on moments not seen in the Broadway show, and gives fans a deeper look at the relationship between Cynthia Erivo 's Elphaba, aka the Wicked Witch of the West, and Ariana Grande 's Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. The movie also allows more time to get to know the show's supporting cast, including Jonathan Bailey 's Fiyero—the object of both Glinda and Elphaba's affections—as well as Elphaba's sister Nessarose ( Marissa Bode ) and even the Wizard himself ( Jeff Goldlbum ).
And while the film version did not add any fully new songs, it did give them slightly more time to breathe than they receive on stage—and does offer an incredible cameo for musical theater fans in one of the new sections written for the film. Originally based on Gregory Maguire 's 1995 book Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , both the musical and the movie differ wildly from the novel , as well as the book that started it all, L. Frank Baum 's 1900 children's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz .
(Fun fact: the name Elphaba pays tribute to the original author, as Maguire used his initials L.F.B.
to create the name of Erivo's character.) While it's been over 20 years since the musical debuted on Broadway in 2003— with Idina Menzel playing Elphaba Thropp and Kristin Chenoweth as the original Glinda—the magic of Oz continues to captivate everyone over the rainbow. To find out what exactly changed in bringing Wicked to the big screen, keep reading.
The Time Dragon Clock Originally an important part of the book Wicked , a traveling puppet show called the Clock of the Time Dragon makes an appearance at the start of the Broadway show under the name the Time Dragon Clock . However, in the film, it is only briefly mentioned when Glinda ( Ariana Grande ) confirms Elphaba's ( Cynthia Erivo ) death to the citizens of Oz. Elphaba's Childhood While the stage version does touch on Elphaba's conception and birth, there is no flashback showing her as a young child.
However, the film shows viewers what her life was like growing up, and even gives a glimpse at her powers from a young age. The movie also introduces the character of Dulcibear ( Sharon D. Clarke ), a talking bear who is present when Elphaba is born and takes responsibility for raising her after her father ( Andy Nyman ), the governor of Munchkinland, is horrified that she's green.
Dulcibear also provides a backstory for why Elphaba is so concerned about animals being removed from society and losing the ability to speak, a major plot point in the film and the musical. Elphaba's Introduction to Shiz University In the Broadway musical, Elphaba is already enrolled at Shiz University as a way to help take care of her sister Nessarose ( Marissa Bode ). In the film, she is merely there to drop her off, but when Madame Morrible ( Michelle Yeoh ) sees her display of power, she insists that Elphaba enroll.
The rest unfolds much the same, with Glinda accidentally volunteering to be Elphaba's roommate, with the musical version explaining that Elphaba's room assignment must have fallen through the cracks. Doctor Dillamond and the Animal Freedom Fighters In both the musical and the movie, Doctor Dillamond ( voiced by Peter Dinklage in the film ) is a talking goat and the history professor at Shiz who makes the students aware of the ongoing plot against animals throughout Oz. While the film introduces audiences to several other talking animals who appear to be part of an animal resistance movement, they do not appear in the musical.
On stage, the song "Something Bad" takes place in Doctor Dillamond's classroom, while on screen it's sung by him and Elphaba in his private quarters. Elphaba and Fiyero's Meet Cute Both the musical and the movie include a love triangle between Glinda, Elphaba and Fiyero ( Jonathan Bailey ). However, Fiyero's introduction and how he meets Elphaba do differ from stage to screen.
In the show, his carriage almost runs her over when he is dropped off at Shiz by his servant. In the movie, he almost tramples over Elphaba in the woods while riding his horse near the university, with Fiyero joking that they didn't see her as she blended in with the greenery. The Little Lion Cub After Doctor Dillamond announces that he is being let go from Shiz, a new professor takes over and shows off new cages that have been designed to hold animals —with his example housing a sad lion cub.
Elphaba is furious and , in the stage show, causes the students and professor to start moving uncontrollably as she and Fiyero rescue the cub and take him to safety. In the movie, she ends up putting all of them to sleep instead by using poppies ( an Easter Egg for the original 1939 film The Wizard of Oz , in which she puts Dorothy, the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion to sleep in a field of poppies). Off to the Emerald City There's one small change as Elphaba heads off to meet the Wizard ( Jeff Goldlbum ) in the film : Her father comes to the train station, where Nessarose introduces him to Boq ( Ethan Slater ).
However, her father does not come to say goodbye in the musical. The Tale of the Grimmerie The movie provides more information on the Grimmerie, an ancient book of spells written in a language that is lost to modern-day Ozians. So, while the movie version does not feature any full new songs, it does feature a new section added to "One Short Day.
The movie's extended version adds to the legend of the Wizard, and claims that he is the only person who has been able to read the Grimmerie, fulfilling an Ozian prophecy many had been waiting for (which we later learn is not true as he cannot read it, but Elphaba can.) The Original Witches Return as New Characters Not only is "One Short Day" the song that was changed the most from the stage to the screen, but it offers another surprise as well. The new section in the movie is sung by special guest stars: Broadway's original Elphaba and Glinda, Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth .
The duo are credited as Wiz-O-Mania Super Stars, playing characters that do not appear in the stage version, but provide fans of the musical a double dose of nostalgia as they interact with Erivo and Grande in the Emerald City. The Not-So-Wonderful Wizard of Oz In both versions of Wicked, the Wizard starts off by charming both Elphaba and Glinda. However in the movie he does it with the aid of a giant model of Oz, saying he plans to build a road that will lead its citizens to the Emerald City.
He even lets Elphaba and Glinda pick the color of said road, leading to the creation of the famed Yellow Brick Road. Elphaba Defies Gravity While there are no huge changes to the act one climax (and ultimately the film's ending), Elphaba's big musical number does get stretched out in the film, and includes a moment where she sees a vision of a younger version of herself, which spurs her on to fly away and leave the Wizard and Glinda as she makes a new name for herself. The stage play doesn't include such a flashback.
As for all the changes coming in Wicked: Part 2 ? Come back next year to find out what they might be..
