Oh, the suspense! Director Jon M. Chu is playing coy about Dorothy’s appearance in “Wicked: For Good”, and honestly, it’s both thrilling and mildly infuriating. After months of speculation and fan theories swirling around social media like a Kansas tornado, we finally have some concrete details about how much of the ruby-slippered icon we’ll actually see when “Wicked: For Good” hits theaters on November 21.
Let’s be real here—when you’re adapting a beloved Broadway musical that exists in the same universe as one of cinema’s most iconic films, you’re walking a tightrope made of Yellow Brick Road. One wrong step, and you’ll have fans throwing more than just water at you.
Chu has been refreshingly honest about the challenge of incorporating Dorothy into “Wicked: For Good” without completely derailing Elphaba and Glinda’s emotional journey. “I didn’t want to step on who you think Dorothy is in whatever story that you came into this with,” Chu explained to People Magazine, showing a level of reverence that’s both admirable and slightly nerve-wracking.
The Broadway version keeps Dorothy mostly in the shadows—literally. She appears as a shadowy silhouette behind scrims, existing more as a catalyst than a character. But “Wicked: For Good” promises to expand on this approach, giving audiences more of Dorothy than the stage show ever did. The recent trailer tantalizingly shows Dorothy walking alongside her famous companions—the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion—approaching the Wizard’s domain.
However, here’s the kicker: we’ll never actually see Dorothy’s face. It’s a creative choice that’s either brilliantly respectful or slightly maddening, depending on your perspective. Chu is essentially asking us to fill in the blanks with our own imagination, which is both clever and potentially frustrating for audiences craving closure.
Ariana Grande’s insight into Glinda’s relationship with Dorothy adds another delicious layer to “Wicked: For Good”. According to Grande, Glinda offers Dorothy advice after her crash-landing but doesn’t exactly provide the most efficient route to safety. “She could have told her to take the Emerald City train! But she didn’t. That’s a little shady, Glinda!” Grande revealed to Empire, clearly relishing the character’s passive-aggressive tendencies.
This dynamic promises to add complexity to what many might remember as a straightforward good witch helping a lost girl. Instead, “Wicked: For Good” presents Glinda as someone who’s dealing with her own emotional turmoil and frankly doesn’t have time for Dorothy’s problems. It’s a refreshingly human portrayal that makes Glinda more relatable and infinitely more interesting.
Chu emphasized that “Wicked: For Good” represents the crucial intersection where audiences were first introduced to Oz. He highlighted how the sequel will bridge the gap between the “Wicked” universe and the classic Wizard of Oz story we all know. Dorothy’s echoes of footsteps seem to be a prophecy that is being fulfilled one after another. Her arrival causes an unraveling of the secrets that have been kept from characters for a long time, and thus, every character has to decide whether to take the side of illusion for comfort or to pay the cost for transformation.
The director has been careful to maintain that Dorothy remains a pawn in the middle of all of it, rather than becoming a central character. This approach should satisfy purists who want “Wicked: For Good” to remain focused on Elphaba and Glinda’s relationship while acknowledging that Dorothy’s presence is essential to the story’s conclusion.
If you thought the first “Wicked” movie was emotionally challenging, brace yourself. Chu previously warned that “Wicked: For Good” will be significantly more emotionally taxing, explaining to Entertainment Weekly that while “Part 1 is about choices, Part 2 is about consequences.” “Wicked: For Good” is a heartbreaking theatrical production. When Elphaba and Glinda deal with the consequences of their decisions, the theme of the narrative is betrayal, sacrifice, and the wretched cost of doing what is right in a world that is hostile to the different. With the arrival of Dorothy as the catalyst, the flames of the past cover the emotional stakes become higher.
The sequel follows Elphaba’s transformation into the Wicked Witch of the West as she becomes vilified by Oz’s citizens and forced into exile. Dorothy’s arrival represents the beginning of the end for Elphaba’s story, adding weight to every interaction between these characters. It isn’t simply different worlds that come into conflict, but these are also the conflicting truths. Their talks reach the core just to dismantle the tales of good and evil, showing the suffering, the power, and the point of view each woman has.
Despite confirming that Dorothy has been cast, Chu remains tight-lipped about the actress’s identity. Fan theories have run wild, with names like Alisha Weir, Maddie Ziegler, and Dove Cameron being thrown around online. The secrecy adds to the anticipation, but it also feels like unnecessary drama in an already drama-filled story.
“Wicked: For Good” faces the monumental task of satisfying both longtime “Wicked” fans and Wizard of Oz enthusiasts while telling a coherent, emotionally satisfying story. Based on these latest revelations, it seems like Chu and his team understand the delicate balance required.
When “Wicked: For Good” arrives in theaters this November, we’ll finally discover whether this careful approach to Dorothy’s inclusion pays off or if it leaves audiences wanting more. Dorothy, by virtue of the immense mystery that is her role, has turned out to be the most fascinating puzzle of the film; an influential character whose touch can be felt even without her presence. It’s hard to say if she will overshadow the other characters or be just a slight line in the bigger picture, but the mere fact of her coming out is that it will shake to the core what we had previously thought of Oz. Either way, one thing’s certain, this won’t be your typical Kansas tornado landing.
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