Director Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked: For Good” has had the second-largest movie opening of 2025, just behind the Minecraft movie.
In its first weekend out, the film brought in $150 million in the US and $226 million worldwide. Unfortunately, due to Thanksgiving week, the film did not reach its $300 million mark by the end of the weekend, earning approximately $297 million.
I couldn’t be happier with how the film turned out. There were many parallels between the first film and even The Wizard of Oz.
In “Wicked: For Good,” in Munchkinland, there is heavy air pollution during one of Glinda’s (Ariana Grande) visits, and Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) arrives to depollute the sky, spelling out “Our Wizard lies.” In “The Wizard of Oz,” the Wicked Witch (Margaret Hamilton) pollutes the sky.
One of my favorite parallels is the recreation of the original “Wicked” Broadway musical poster at the end of the film, featuring Elphaba’s iconic Wicked Witch hat and Glinda in an all-white outfit and hood, whispering in her best friend’s ear.
There is a huge amount of character development between the characters.
Elphaba is sadly in hiding, still trying to protect the animals’ voices, but many of them have already been captured and lost their right to speak. The rest are preparing to flee Oz altogether.
Elphaba’s confidence skyrocketed, and she went out to the public often fighting for the animals’ rights, which I loved watching.
We finally get to see Glinda have her girl-boss moment, quickly becoming a crowd favorite. Little do they know, Glinda is constantly criticized by Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh). Glinda never learned how to create magic, but to give the illusion that she has the power to do so, they created her iconic bubble and her wand. All made out of working hands, not of magic.
Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) has joined the Wizards’ military, making him the general. I felt extremely sorrowful towards his character. He was so lighthearted in the first film, but no, he’s forced into his own bubble of constantly hunting after Elphaba to stop the “wrong” the wizard claims she is doing.
Thankfully, halfway through the film, he and Elphaba reunite just before Fiyero’s wedding with Glinda!
Now this stirred a pot of conflict between these two women, who were once best friends turned enemies. There is a specific scene in which the two have a physical fight after Nessarose’s death, triggered by Dorothy’s house.
The two are throwing insults back and forth until the Wizards’ men separate them, and Fiyero is now a war criminal.
This is where a very controversial song takes place, featuring debatable sensual actions that parents with young children have found problematic.
As much as I agree it’s not appropriate for younger eyes, there is a reason it was rated PG-13.
As much as I love the plot of “The Wizard of Oz” and watching the characters’ journey from when and how they meet Dorothy, it was extremely nostalgic seeing them become the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion.
Many know the reasons for these characters to help Dorthy: one needs a heart for love, a brain, and the other for courage. But in this film, we watch how this happened and why they need it. As the original film is just the aftermath of each of their experiences.
Watching it made me emotional. As a kid, I just assumed they were just born that way, but it’s so much more complex and emotional.
It’s one of the core reasons everyone should watch the Wicked films.
I couldn’t be happier with the outcome of this film, with an open-ended ending when Elphaba and Fiyero sneak away from the eyes of Oz and go to what is called the great beyond. From what is shown in the film, it basically looks like a huge desert with sand for mountains.
The opposite comes to Glinda now that the Wicked Witch is “dead,” she puts all of her strength into taking down Madame Morrible and the Wizard, sending them away to where I hope they can never crawl out of, and becomes the iconic pink bubbly Glinda, now a leader to the people. Truly good.
In my own mind, I choose to believe they have found their everlasting peace and happiness.
