American singer-actress Ariana Grande and English superstar Cynthia Erivo's upcoming movie adaptation of the hit Broadway musical “Wicked” will be split into two parts.
The first part is slated for a Christmas holiday release in 2024 with part two premieres a year later, in December 2025.
The movie director Jon. M Chu announced Tuesday the news on social media.
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The musical is centered around the witches from the land of Oz and the unlikely friendship that is formed between The Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.
Grande will portray Glinda the Good Witch, made famous by Kristin Chenoweth in the original 2003 production, while Erivo will play Elphaba the Wicked Witch of the West, the role originated by Idina Menzel on Broadway.
The Steven Schwartz musical is based on the 1995 novel “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” by Gregory Maguire, which itself is a retelling of the 1900 L. Frank Baum’s classic “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, told from the perspective of the witches.
Screenwriter Winnie Holsman and composer Schwartz are adapting the new musical movie.
The project will witness Grande and Erivo comeback to Broadway.
The “7 Rings” pop star got her start in the 2008 Broadway musical 13 as a teenager before breaking out on Nickelodeon’s “Victorious”.
Erivo won the 2016 Tony Award for best performance by a leading actress in a musical for her portrayal of Celie in “The Color Purple”.
Grande’s love for the production has been well-documented over the years, including her explosive performance of “The Wizard and I” on NBC’s “A Very Wicked Halloween” in 2018.
The movie adaptation has suffered several delays since production started.
It has been in the works ever since the stage musical broke the $1 billion mark in ticket sales back in 2004.
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