‘Of Course It’s Cynthia’: Wicked‘s John Chu Talks Casting Elphaba

With Wicked out now on digital home release, it’s become a fan frenzy to learn more behind-the-scenes details about the making of the film. In the featurette Making Wicked, you’ll be able to enjoy the story from the start of production, including filmmaker Jon M. Chu’s casting process for his cinematic adaptation of the Broadway musical about the untold origin story of the witches from Oz.

One of the most insightful sections of the special features’ docu-style content is the how the film’s leads, Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, had a long audition journey for the roles of Elphaba and Glinda.

io9 has an exclusive look at “Casting Elphaba,” a clip from the Universal Home Entertainment digital release. It shows Chu talking about casting Erivo as the film’s Wicked Witch of the West. “Let’s just look at everybody,” he recalls saying. “And we saw them all and they were all fantastic. They were great. I was like, all right, I wanna—let me just meet Cynthia.” 

He continues, “She didn’t act like she was bigger than the show. She didn’t act like she was a fan of the show. And more than that, she was a fan of a story about an outsider.” In the background, you can hear Erivo’s powerhouse vocals performing the musical’s numbers including “The Wizard and I.”  And, as Chu explains, the final decision of who would play Elphaba was a no-brainer.

“We were like, of course, it’s Cynthia. And then she sang ‘Defying Gravity.'” Chu said, referencing the character’s signature showstopper. “As soon as she left the room, we’re like, that’s her, that’s Elphaba. She was so raw and vulnerable. And I couldn’t get her out of my head.”

Wicked is out now in theaters and digital. Wicked: For Good opens this Thanksgiving.

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