Wicked Cast & Character Guide: Who Plays Who? – SlashFilm

After years of delays and anticipation, the first half of Jon M. Chu’s sprawling, two-part movie adaptation of “Wicked” — the massively popular Broadway musical based on Gregory Maguire’s retelling of “The Wizard of Oz” — is finally hitting theaters, and Chu has assembled an all-star cast to bring Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman’s Broadway hit to the big screen. “Wicked” flips the script on L. Frank Baum’s original story about Dorothy (Judy Garland in the classic 1939 “Wizard of Oz” film) exploring the magical land of Oz by focusing on Elphaba, a young girl born with green skin who struggles to fit in at the prestigious Shiz University and ultimately becomes the legendary pop culture villain The Wicked Witch of the West (memorably portrayed by Margaret Hamilton in the ’39 movie).

So, who’s in Chu’s “Wicked” movie, decades after Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth originated the lead roles of Elphaba and Galinda (the latter of whom becomes the Good Witch, played by Billy Burke in “The Wizard of Oz”) on stage? From major pop stars to fellow Broadway veterans and Oscar winners, here’s who plays who in “Wicked” and exactly how the characters fit into the story. (Again, these are the major characters that feature in “Wicked: Part One,” as “Part Two” won’t hit theaters until November 2025.)

Unfortunately for Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo), the bright green hue of her skin — which she refers to as “verdigris” in one of the musical’s songs, “The Wizard and I” — sets her apart immediately when she arrives at Shiz University. This is nothing new for Elphaba; in the stage musical, it’s revealed that her late mother had an affair that resulted in a green-skinned baby, leading Elphaba’s father to resent her presence forever. (If this sounds dark, rest assured that Elphaba’s whole deal in Gregory Maguire’s original book is way darker.) Elphaba’s troubles at Shiz only intensify when she ends up rooming with Galinda Upland (Ariana Grande), a bubbly, popular student who bullies Elphaba at first before the two finally discover some common ground (and become close friends).

For many musical theater fans, it was incredibly exciting to learn that Erivo scored the lead role of Elphaba” in the “Wicked” movie. Erivo memorably won a Tony for her role as Celie in “The Color Purple,” which began its run off-Broadway in 2013 and transferred to the Great White Way in 2015. (She won the statue and a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album in 2016 and 2017.) On the big screen, Erivo has starred in major films like 2018’s “Widows,” the 2019 biopic “Harriet” (which earned her an Oscar nomination for playing Harriet Tubman), and Robert Zemeckis’ 2022 remake of “Pinocchio” as the Blue Fairy.

If you’re worried about Ariana Grande’s acting chops — since we know she has the vocal range for a big-screen movie musical — allow me to remind you that the girl grew up in the Nickelodeon mines, and she’s beyond ready for a funny yet emotional lead role that allows her to show off her versatility as a performer. When Grande’s Galinda Upland first meets Elphaba, she’s just as judgmental as everybody else thanks to Elphaba’s green skin, but after she tricks Elphaba into wearing an ugly hat to a dance as an act of humilitation, Galinda changes her tune. Throughout the first half of “Wicked,” Elphaba and Galinda become best friends … only to be torn apart by political strife in Oz (though that part will have to wait for “Wicked: Part Two”).

Does Grande even really need an introduction? Just in case you’re completely unfamiliar with the pop goddess with a four octave vocal range (who’s mastered the super-high whistle register to boot), the two-time Grammy winner and bestselling recording artist is responsible for hits like “Break Free,” “Thank U, Next,” and “Yes, And” got her start on Nickelodeon projects like “Victorious” and “Sam & Cat.” Aside from a cameo in Adam McKay’s 2021 satire “Don’t Look Up,” this is Grande’s first major movie role, but just look to her extraordinary turns on “Saturday Night Live” for proof that she’s got what it takes.

At first, it seems like Michelle Yeoh’s Madame Morrible is simply a strict yet fair teacher at Shiz University — especially when she offers private lessons to Elphaba after bearing witness to the young green-skinned girl’s magical abilities. (Yes, this whole story is set in the fantastical world of Oz, but not everyone is capable of magic; only true witches and wizards.) Later, though, it’s revealed that Madame Morrible is actually deeply involved in the government’s dirty schemes and works directly with the corrupt Wizard himself (more on him in a moment), giving the character a heel-turn that Yeoh will, undoubtedly, pull off with aplomb.

Yeoh has been an industry staple for decades, appearing in everything from “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” to “Memoirs of a Geisha,” the James Bond flick “Tomorrow Never Dies,” and the enormous romantic comedy “Crazy Rich Asians.” In 2022, thanks to Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert’s sci-fi action-comedy “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” Yeoh not only booked her first-ever lead role, but she also became the first Asian woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress. Throw in appearances in genre fare like the Marvel Cinematic Universe film “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” and the TV series “Star Trek: Discovery,” and you’ve got a seriously accomplished and beloved actor who will definitely bring something special to “Wicked.”

Casting Hollywood legend Jeff Goldblum as the enigmatic false god known as The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a stroke of total genius. Anyone who’s seen “The Wizard of Oz” already knows the guy is basically a fraud, but “Wicked” takes his entire charade one step further and reveals that he’s just some guy from Nebraska who crash-landed his hot air balloon in Oz and ended up becoming the land’s ruler. Unfortunately for Elphaba, she desperately wants to meet the wizard — no, seriously, she sings like three separate songs about hoping to meet him so they can improve Oz together — and when she does, she learns that he plans to rely on her magical abilities for his own nefarious purposes, because he’s not actually a wizard at all.

You know who Goldblum is. Everybody does. The guy’s been in everything from “Jurassic Park” to Wes Anderson movies like “The Grand Budapest Hotel” to Marvel films like “Thor: Ragnarok” and the action thriller “Independence Day,” and overall, he’s one of the most universally adored Hollywood stars around. The Wizard might be a fraud, but Goldblum is the real deal, and he’ll undoubtedly bring his signature charm to the role.

Every movie needs a heartthrob, and Jonathan Bailey fills that role in “Wicked” as Fiyero Tigelaar, a handsome Shiv student and royal prince who immediately catches every girl’s attention when he arrives at school. Unfortunately for Galinda, who’s smitten with him right away, Fiyero ends up forming an unexpected bond with Elphaba, and the two catch feelings pretty quickly; unfortunately for everybody involved, everything changes after Galinda and Elphaba meet the Wizard and Elphaba basically becomes the face of the Oz resistance. (We’ll have to wait for “Wicked: Part Two” for that to really get going, though.)

Bailey is definitely used to playing a heartthrob after his turn in “Bridgerton” season 2 — where he carries out a simmering, slow-burn romance as Anthony Bridgerton opposite Simone Ashley’s Kate Sharma — and you may have also seen his acclaimed turn in the miniseries “Fellow Travelers,” where he carries on a forbidden affair with Matt Bomer. He also showed up in a major guest role in season 3 of Netflix’s swoony teen drama “Heartstopper,” and don’t worry, he can sing too. Bailey’s stage resumé is pretty extensive, and in 2019, he won a Laurence Olivier Award for his role as Jamie in a gender-swapped, London-based production of “Company.”

If Jon M. Chu splits “Wicked” up in the exact same way that the Broadway musical divides Act 1 and Act 2, fans will have to wait a little while to see exactly what happens with Boq Woodsman, a lovelorn Munchkin played by Ethan Slater. Right from the start, Boq has a huge crush on Galinda, but she ends up tricking him into asking Elphaba’s younger sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode, both of whom I’ll circle back to momentarily) to Shiz University’s first big dance, at which point Nessa falls hard for Boq. He’s not going to seem particularly vital in the first part of “Wicked,” but file Boq’s whole deal away for next year.

As for Slater, “Wicked” is his first big film project. On the small screen, he’s appeared in episodes of shows like “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Fosse/Verdon” (where, incidentally, Slater plays Joel Grey, the Broadway veteran who appeared in the original Broadway cast of “Wicked” as the Wizard), and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” Slater is likely most famous at this point for his lead role in “The Spongebob Musical,” which earned him a Tony nomination, and his high-profile relationship with Galinda herself, Ariana Grande.

If you’ve seen “The Wizard of Oz,” you can probably figure out the fate that befalls Nessarose Thropp, Elphaba’s paraplegic younger sister, if you recall what happens to the Wicked Witch of the West’s sister. (Here’s a hint: she earns a similar title involving the word “east.”) At the beginning of “Wicked,” though, Nessarose — played by Marissa Bode — is simply a young and eager student excited to be by her sister’s side at Shiz, where she develops a huge crush on Boq Woodsman after they attend a dance together. Much like Boq, Nessarose’s part in the overall story is much bigger in the musical’s second act, so Bode’s full arc will have to wait until “Wicked: Part Two.”

This is Bode’s first feature-length film, which is astounding, but she’s also making history as the first actor in a wheelchair to ever play Nessarose. (In the stage adaptation, an able-bodied actor plays the role because Elphaba magically “restores” Nessarose’s legs in Act 2.) “I’m genuinely so honored that it’s me doing that,” Bode told Variety in September 2024. “Seeing somebody authentically cast like that on screen is just so important, especially in something so cool and so magical as ‘Wicked.'” Regarding that Act 2 plot point, Bode teased that it changes a bit, but overall, she said she was proud of the film’s inclusivity and vision. “Casting authentically and showing an authentic disabled person is very important, but it’s also very important how we’re shown,” Bode said. “I am very happy with the changes that have been made, for sure.” It’ll be amazing to see Bode make her big-screen debut in “Wicked,” and the next movie will give this rising star an even bigger showcase.

A major subplot in “Wicked” that has nothing to do with witchcraft or wizardry is a growing “anti-animal” sentiment throughout Oz, meaning that any capital-A “Animals” who can speak English and basically live as humans are suddenly viewed as a problem in society. Early in the musical, Doctor Dillamond (a goat) reveals to Elphaba that the Ozian government has expressed interest in caging Animals and that there’s even a larger, darker conspiracy to cast a spell upon all Animals to stop them from speaking ever again. Elphaba is outraged and pledges to help Doctor Dillamond and his kind in any way that she can, but the good doctor ends up fired from Shiz University … and once again, you’ll have to wait and see what happens to Doctor Dillamond in the second half of “Wicked.”

In Jon M. Chu’s movie, Doctor Dillamond is a CGI creation, but he’s voiced by Peter Dinklage, winner of multiple Emmys and another universally adored Hollywood staple. Audiences probably know Dinklage best for his eight-season run on “Game of Thrones” as fan favorite Tyrion Lannister — a role which won Dinklage a whopping four Emmys — but he’s also appeared in huge projects like “Elf,” “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” and genre fare like “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” and “Avengers: Infinity War.” 

Galinda’s friends and henchmen Pfannee and ShenShen — played in the film by Bowen Yang and Bronwyn James — aren’t huge characters in Gregory Maguire’s book or the Broadway musical, but their roles are definitely expanded in the movie … and they’re pretty different to boot. For starters, Pfannee is a girl in the book but became a queer man when Yang joined the cast, and ShenShen gets elevated from an ensemble character in the musical to someone with actual screen time. So, where have you seen Yang and James before?

Yang is definitely best known for his ongoing role as a repertory player on “Saturday Night Live” as well as for his roles in movies like “Fire Island” and “Bros” and TV shows like “Girls5Eva” and “The Other Two.” (Yang is also extremely close with his “Wicked” co-star Ariana Grande and, in anticipation of the film, hosted her on “Las Culturistas,” his popular podcast with Matt Rogers.) As for James, the British actor has appeared in single episodes of shows like “Ghosts,” “Outlander,” and “Slow Horses,” and played a major role on the series “Harlots” as Fanny Lambert.

“Wicked” will open in theaters on November 22, 2024.