Here's something that hasn't been done with a musical before: will release its feature take on the smash Broadway musical in two parts on December 25, 2024 and December 25, 2025. It's a bold swing for a musical, which of course have been risky onscreen. This one is based on a past crowd-pleaser.
Jon M. Chu is directing the untold tale of the Witches of Oz, based on Gregory Maguire's most successful novel and adapted for the screen by Winne Holzman, the stage producer, and Oscar-winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz.
In general, blockbuster-level YA films based on books, i.e. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, were huge successes. However, Lionsgate's third Divergent movie Allegiant, which plummeted at the box office with $66 million domestic and $179 million worldwide, never benefited. However, the second half of Shailene Woodley's Veronica Divergent novel fell dramatically.
Wicked's advantage is that it is a $3 billion-grossing Broadway musical seen by more than 30 million people worldwide.
