The Wicked movie has finally landed on the 2024 movie schedule, bringing the beloved Broadway musical to life on the big screen. While it offers a dazzling reimagining of the land of Oz, some fans might notice a few key differences in the visuals. From Dorothy’s red slippers to the iconic Yellow Brick Road, the movie makes subtle changes that are both creative and practical. Director Jon M. Chu recently opened up about the updates, explaining that they stemmed from artistic decisions and the realities of navigating intellectual property rights tied to The Wizard of Oz.
You might be in for a surprise if you were expecting Dorothy to click her glittering ruby heels. While the 1939 classic made ruby slippers iconic, MGM still holds the rights to many elements of that film, including the dazzling red shoes. In an interview with Variety, Jon M. Chu revealed that the team behind Wicked instead looked to L. Frank Baum’s original novels, where Dorothy’s slippers were described as silver. Staying true to Baum’s vision and sidestepping legal complications, the filmmaker explained:
We had boundaries of what we could reference or not. We never use the ruby slippers. Nessa has on crystal slippers as in the Frank L. Baum book, Gregory Maguire book and the show. I don’t think the phrase 'yellow brick road' is copywritten, but definitely the shape of the road is. We couldn’t do the spiral. We had to do a circle that continues to show it’s not where the road ends.
For Chu, Wicked is more than a whimsical prequel—a story with real stakes, unlike The Wizard of Oz, which Chu describes as “potentially a dream.” Chu's film establishes Oz as a living, breathing world with its own cultures and struggles. This shift in tone is evident from the very beginning. Chu deliberately places viewers at “the most famous crime scene in cinema and literature,” referencing the Wicked Witch’s hat in a puddle as a way to ground the story in emotional and narrative depth.
This grittier, more grounded approach reflects the heart of the play adaptation: the unlikely friendship between Elphaba and Glinda–Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo play the witches at the center of the story–and how their personal journeys shaped the Oz we know from The Wizard of Oz. The creative alterations made by the Crazy Rich Asians helmer may be a bit jarring to some viewers who revere Victor Fleming's '39 film, but others might find them refreshing.
Adapting Stephen Schwartz's Tony-winning play was always going to be a balancing act, and Jon M. Chu leaned into this challenge by splitting the story into two parts. The first film–the story was divided into two films–focuses on Elphaba and Glinda’s time at Shiz University, setting the stage for the emotional and political conflicts that will unfold in the upcoming Wicked Part Two, slated for the 2025 movie schedule.
But, despite the cosmetic changes from The Wizard of Oz, Wicked stays true to its roots, even bringing back original Broadway stars Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth for special cameos. This nod to the musical’s legacy and the best emotionally charged songs ensures that longtime fans will feel the magic while new audiences alike will be swept into the story. You can see the film in theaters now and, if you're feeling nostalgic, stream the iconic Oz film using a Max subscription.
