'Wicked: For Good' director says "the stakes are higher than ever" for Cynthia Erivo's Elphaba

We are officially less than three months away from Wicked: For Good, and director Jon M. Chu is giving a new preview of what is in store for Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande's Elphaba and Glinda. 

Elphaba, now demonized as The Wicked Witch of the West, lives in exile, hidden within the Ozian forest while continuing her fight for the freedom of Oz’s silenced Animals and desperately trying to expose the truth she knows about The Wizard.  

Glinda, meanwhile, has become the glamorous symbol of Goodness for all of Oz, living at the palace in Emerald City and reveling in the perks of fame and popularity. Under the instruction of Madame Morrible, Glinda is deployed to serve as an effervescent comfort to Oz, reassuring the m asses that all is well under the rule of The Wizard.   

"I love that people get to see the full masterplan, and the full scope of what Cynthia and Ariana do in this movie," he expressed to Empire. "I’m so happy they were appreciated in the first one, but movie two is where the meat comes out."

He continued to share, "The stakes are higher than ever for Elphaba. She’s fighting to expose the Wizard, but she’s alone in that. Can one person actually make a difference? She’s up against the Wizard’s propaganda, calling her the Wicked Witch, talking about how her skin is green and her soul is impure. What happens when the home you believed in doesn’t want you anymore? Is it worth defending? Why stay?"