Evil it only covers the first half of the beloved Broadway production, and the film gives several hints about things that will happen in the second half. THE Wizard of Oz prequel was one of the most culturally significant films of 2024, with many people rushing to the cinema for the first time in a long time to see John M. Chu's cinematic take on this classic musical. The story revolves around Elphaba and Glinda, two witches who meet at Shiz University and, at the end of Evilwill eventually become the Wicked Witch and the Good Witch of The Wizard of Oz.
There are several ways that Evil connects to THE Wizard of Ozbut the most obvious is through Elphaba's transformation from a young, ambitious witch into the dangerous villain everyone fears. The story does a great job of explaining how this character got to this point, and there are a lot of twists in the second half that completely reshape the original story in fun and exciting ways. The green bottle of elixir plays an important role in this reframing of events, proving that not everything is what it seems.
Elphaba's bottle of green elixir is one of the only things she inherited from her mother
It is a symbol of his love for his late mother
The superficial reason why Elphaba's green elixir is so important to her narrative is that it's the only thing she has that belonged to her mother. The bottle is a constant reminder of the mother figure she never had, like her mother died giving birth to Elphaba's sister Nessarose. This causes a lot of conflict between the two sisters, with deep-rooted guilt and resentment growing between them over their mother's absence.
The dynamic between Elphaba and Nessarose later becomes a crucial threat to the plot in EvilThe second part of Nessarose blindly accepts her sister's crimes because of the subconscious resentment she has always had towards her. This sends her into a helpless spiral that leads to Nessarose becoming known as the Wicked Witch of the East. The bottle of green elixir serves to ground Elphaba in her pastreminding her of her similarities to her mother and absolving her of the guilt she feels over her death.
Why Elphaba keeps the green elixir under her pillow
The Elixir reminds Elphaba where she came from
All over Evilit is shown that Elphaba keeps her mother's green elixir under her pillow when she shares a room with Glinda. The object is shown several times, suggesting its increasing importance in the second part, but the real nature of the elixir is kept secret. The only time this is actually mentioned explicitly is when Glinda asks Elphaba about the objectto which she replies that it belonged to her mother and nothing else. This proves that Elphaba is quite sensitive about the elixir, as it is her last connection to her mother.
The trinket exists to prove that Elphaba's mother left a considerable absence in her life, which she is trying to replace by keeping her around.
The dynamic between Elphaba and her mother is not explored in much detail in Evil (The film focuses primarily on Elphaba's father), but the fact that she kept the elixir seems to suggest that their short-lived relationship was happy and healthy. The trinket exists to prove that Elphaba's mother left a considerable absence in her life, which she is trying to replace by keeping her around. On a more narrative level, the elixir will later become important in understanding the truth behind Elphaba's ancestry and social status.
The bottle of green elixir is still the key to Elphaba's future after Wicked
The item plays an important role in Wicked: For Good
In Evil: foreverIn the second half of the story, it will be revealed that Elphaba's real father is actually the Wizard of Oz, who seduced her mother (potentially against her will) using the magical elixir. The elixir plays a crucial role in bringing this information to light, as it is the only thing left in the “death”, allowing Glinda to acquire it for herself and trace its origins. This takes her directly back to the Wizard, where she is forced to reckon with her true personality and the complicity she displays in his terrible regime.
The plot twist about Elphaba's real father is much more than a cheap trick: the information completely reshapes Elphaba and Glinda's characters, giving much more weight to their actions throughout the story. By rejecting the Wizard's proposal at the end of the EvilElphaba is shaking off her generational shame and freeing herself from the restrictions (and family) that have been placed on her. Meanwhile, the revelation at the end of the second part forces Glinda to confess that she is working for a monster in order to increase her social status.