We’ve reached the end of another long week. But before we clock out for the weekend, we’re giving props where they’re due. Here’s to our winners of the week.
If you'll allow me to nerd out about the history of the Wicked movie for just a second, and why I've been skeptical from the jump: The show, based on Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel, which is inspired by The Wizard of Oz, has been running and touring since 2003. A movie was announced in 2010. Yeah…it doesn't take a decade to shoot a movie musical (unless you're Richard Linklater). And every time there was a report or a rumor that it was actually, finally going to happen I became less and less convinced. So when the current iteration was first announced, I swear I turned to a friend and said, “please, the Wicked movie is never gonna happen.”
Cut to Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo being announced as the leads. I was wrong, and they seemed passionate about the project (though my prediction that Grande will need to enunciate more seems to be coming true). But I remained hesitant to get my hopes up. Not necessarily about the actual finished product—In The Heights was pretty good—but about the studio's ability to translate what works about the musical to an audience.
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