I Understand Why Wicked 2 Is Being Released A Year Later, But I Have One Big Worry As Someone New To The Story'

Warning: light spoilers for Wicked: Part One are in play. If you haven’t defied gravity just yet, don’t let this feature bring you down.

Once what we now know as Wicked: Part One came to a close, having to wait for the sequel to hit became a personal struggle. With director Jon M. Chu’s next half arriving almost a year from now on the upcoming 2025 movie schedule, it’s a pain I’m no stranger to in a post-Avengers: Endgame world.

Though I can understand why the space between entries is present, and I do agree with my colleague Dirk Libbey arguing how Wicked is one of the best two-movie splits. At the same time, I’m still new to the film adaptation of this Broadway/literary phenomenon. That in turn leaves me with a huge worry about Wicked: Part Two’s November 2025 release date.

Wicked: Part Two Spoilers Are Fast Becoming An Issue On The Internet

I’m surely not the only person that’s freaking out over how Wicked: Part Two is practically being spoiled right out of the gate. For those of us who are just walking into this narrative for the first time, seeing Cynthia Erivo flying high to “Defying Gravity” was one hell of an ending. For others though, that was only the end of Act I to a stage show they’ve already been obsessed with.

So as someone who’s new to this story, my major concern is before November 21, 2025 rolls around, I’m going to learn pretty much everything there is to know about Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s continued estrangement. It’s already started on TikTok, as there are so many video and comments teasing the canonical future of Nessarose (Marissa Bode).

If you thought the internet wasn’t ready to poke fun of this fact, this message from the world of social media will prove you wrong:

Hell, the official Wicked marketing machine is in on it too thanks to an official featurette spoils the huge cameos that took place in the expanded version of “One Short Day.” (If you’ve seen Part One, you know EXACTLY who I’m talking about.)

I want to break down those concerns one by one, as it’s actually an interesting ladder to walk up. But for now, let me start with giving the benefit of the doubt, and walk through the exact reason that Wicked: Part Two’s release date should stick to its wands.

The One Way Wicked: Part Two’s November 2025 Release Date Makes Sense

It’s awards season, baby! No, that’s both the answer and a proclamation of the point we’re at in the Hollywood calendar, because by the time November rolls around, it’s time to start positioning a studio’s most promising movies for golden glory.

Just as a slew of assure nominations and wins are about to happen after Wicked: Part One’s smash hit opening weekend, you could practically make a Lord of the Rings-style bet that next fall will see the same sort of talk buzzing about. Don’t begrudge this thinking at all, as if I was a studio executive worth my water, I’d have made that same decision. This is coming from a person who’d have greenlit a Speed Racer sequel before the first one even dropped.

So yes, Wicked: Part Two’s debut date makes total business sense. Now let me climb that ladder of logic to tell you why I’m frustrated with that decision and the people who think this is 100% fine.

It’s Not Like It’s Easy To Get To Wicked’s Stage Show

Yes, Wicked has been on Broadway for a little over two decades, and it still something touring companies put on at a fairly regular interval. But have you seen the price of show tickets before any sort of handling fees and theatre upkeep charges are added? That’s not even taking into account how much the reseller market can mark things up to further degrees of lunacy.

Trust me, if my gothically-inclined wife didn’t get us My Chemical Romance tickets for next year, the Nosferatu popcorn bucket would have been the least of my holiday shopping worries. I’m totally going to try and actually see Wicked on Broadway before Part Two hits, because at this point, it’s a necessity.

At the same time, between affordability and the speed of spoilers on the internet, I fear I won’t be able to make that trip fast enough. So imagine what the parents of young children would have to go through in order to even justify that expense. And speaking of those very youths…

Good Luck Convincing Parents To Let Their Kids Read Wicked’s Source Material

Oh Gregory Maguire, you beautiful bastard. You took a populist fairy tale that gave us one of the most iconic fantasy movies of all time and turned it into half political tract and half horny nightmare. Again, without reading the full text of Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, I know that there’s enough stuff in that book that would make Bobby and Suzie’s parents blush.

Or, at the very least, fuel internet trolls to partially trigger Cynthia Erivo’s passionate response against that Wicked fan art. Now I’m not ignorant to the childhood rite of passage that is reading a book above your age range and encountering some stuff that goes over your head.

At the same time, I’d like to see someone try to actively convince a child’s parents that the perfect step to quelling their spawn’s howls and cries to know what happens next is to give them a book that goes into anatomical details about Elphaba that could turn some readers purple. Which leads us to that final point that could unite parent, child, and theater kid alike in the ultimate front of solidarity against Wicked: Part Two spoilers.

The Wizard Of Oz Looks Like State-Funded Propaganda After Wicked

Yes, internet commenter, The Wizard of Oz is a movie that does indeed exist! I know this as not only a fan of the cinematic arts, but also as someone who saw it once way back when. Even with that foggy memory, and with no experience with L. Frank Baum’s Populist saga of literary adventure, I don’t think watching the Judy Garland-led classic is going to play the way you think it is.

Besides the fact that Wicked made some specific changes to avoid overlapping too much with the 1939 MGM classic, the point of the movie kind of gets lost in what’s happened (and what’s probably still waiting ahead) in director Victor Fleming’s iconic musical. When you look at the story of Wicked: Part One alone, it looks like The Wizard of Oz is at best a continuity problem of the highest order, and at worst state-funded propaganda.

Think about it: young Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) accidentally kills the wicked dissident that stands against the rule of The Wizard (Frank Morgan). But we now know that woman to be Elphaba, and we know her tragic backstory and set-up for her eventual death. Do you really feel like jumping through those hoops in your own mind, not to mention those of a young child?

Also, the OG Flying Monkeys will probably give the nightmares anyway… so you might not have to worry about getting to end of The Wizard of Oz, or Wicked: Part Two! So maybe this option does have some merit?

Just as we’ve seen The Rock weigh in on the Wicked “sing along” debate, there’s going to be a lot of talk about what counts as a spoiler for Wicked: Part Two and what doesn’t. For once, the Thanksgiving table might have some bigger fish to fry than our usual political divides; even in the current climate we’re living in.

I guess I’m just going to have to continue to be vigilant in between further screenings of the first installment, which is currently showing in theaters. If you want to know if Wicked’s 3D/4DX experience is worth all the poppy dust it’s been kicking up, read my review to find out! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to click my heels and hope I can land a pair of Wicked tickets for the near future.