Another hit Broadway musical is coming to the big screen, just like Evil hits theaters on November 22nd. Directed by Crazy rich Asians‘Jon M. Chu, Evil is the first film in a two-part extravaganza that expands on the original production. The musical is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Gregory Maguire, which in turn is a creative reinterpretation of the novel by L. Frank Baum. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from the perspective of the Wicked Witch of the West (played by Cynthia Erivo) and Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande).
Evil reveals that the Wicked Witch was born as Elphaba, and her relationship with “evil” is much more complicated than the audience might expect. In fact, she and Glinda (whose name was actually Galinda) were actually friends in Shiz, and the twists and turns of their dynamic make up a large part of the narrative. The remaining characters, many of whom crossover with the original Wizard of Oz figure in fascinating ways, is played by A-list talents like Jonathan Bailey, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, and more.
TelaRant interviewed Chu about his vision for Oz in Evilhow he approached the expanded story to make “Defying Gravity” the emotional highlight and why fans will have the delightful experience of actually seeing Dorothy on the Yellow Brick Road.
Jon M. Chu loved working with “troublemakers” to create the world of Wicked
“This is a time when we have to show why cinema is still important and take audiences to the most spectacular epic proportions.”
Screen Speech: Evil has such a sumptuous visual vocabulary. Can you talk about creating the world of Oz and what your guiding principles were for it visually?
Jon M. Chu: Well, there’s a lot of inspiration for Oz. Not just the images I have in my head, like the Yellow Brick Road and the colors and the rainbows and things like that, but also WW Denslow’s drawings. The original drawings by L. Frank Baum and Denslow are great once you start to delve into them – half of the characters in Emerald City come from these drawings, and the animals themselves.
We try to pull the animals mentioned in these books. I think in the books they mentioned that everything was connected by waterways, which gave us the idea for Shiz. Of course, I was working with Nathan Crowley, who is an incredible production designer. He’s a troublemaker. [Laughs] He loves building and really encouraged me. He said, “No, let’s build this water.” I’m like, “Are you sure? They’re going to leave us?” He’s like, “We’re already starting.” I’m like, “God, they’re going to yell at me.” I love working with troublemakers.
And we thought, “That’s it. This is Oz.” Very few filmmakers manage to make Oz, and this is a time when we have to show why cinema is still important and take audiences to the most spectacular epic proportions. Right now, this is an urgent story to tell what it’s like to overturn the [narrative] and asks, “What does a hero look like? What does a villain look like?” Everyone was involved and we went after it like that.
Wicked Director Reveals His Favorite Additions to Elphaba’s Story in Part 1
“These small differences make us root for her in a way that changes the entire balance of the series.”
Screen Rant: It’s fascinating to me how faithful this is to the first act of the musical, despite it being the length of the entire play. What was your favorite addition or moment that you excavated most subtly?
Jon M. Chu: There are micro adjustments in every aspect because in order for a movie to feel satisfying and not just half a movie, we had to take a step back from what “Defying Gravity” would do. “Defying Gravity” couldn’t just be a closing number; it had to tie in what we were rooting for this whole time.
In a strange way, Glinda opens the show and is almost the host of the night, and then closes at the end. And this one, you don’t understand, so we really had to focus on Elphaba in a weird way. We enter the crime scene – not the narrator, but the crime scene, and we’ll come back to that – but it will be about this person here.
Seeing her childhood was really helpful, and so was the change in perspective. At the show, you are sitting there and next to the audience. You walk into this theater and a green girl appears, and she’s the joke. In this film, Cynthia said, “I’m not the joke.” And you’re like, “You’re right.” In a film, the audience has to join the musical world. We’re convincing the audience in those first 10 minutes that this is how the world works, then the regular green girl walks in and says, “Did I just walk into a damn musical?”
Everyone sings, but at that moment in “The Wizard and I” everything calms down and she starts to sing her little whispers. You’re like, “Oh my God, she can sing. She sings better than any of these people.” For me, these small differences make us root for her in a way that shifts the entire balance of the series to allow “Defying Gravity” to be what we want it to be.
Screen Rant: Another subtle change is that we actually see Dorothy, and she’s not behind a screen. Obviously this will be more important in Act 2, but can you talk about how this might diverge from the series?
Jon M. Chu: Well, I’m not going to say too much about what we did or didn’t show in Movie 2. But in Movie 1, it was important to let Dorothy be how you wanted her to be. I didn’t want to step on your images of whatever version of Dorothy you wanted her to be.
But presence is important because it plays a significant role in what will happen and how they intersect. That’s how we played with it. But you’ll have to see movie 2 to see how far we’ll go with her.
More about Wicked Part 1 (2024)
Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, stars the powerful Emmy, Grammy and Tony winner Cynthia Erivo (Harriet, Broadway’s The Color Purple) as Elphaba, a young woman, misunderstood because of her unusual green skin, which still didn’t discover it. true power, and Grammy-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and global superstar Ariana Grande as Glinda, a popular young woman, gilded by privilege and ambition, who has yet to discover her true heart.
The two meet as students at Shiz University, in the fantastic Land of Oz, and create an unlikely but deep friendship. After an encounter with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads and their lives take very different paths. Glinda’s unwavering desire for popularity causes her to be seduced by power, while Elphaba’s determination to remain true to herself and those around her will have unexpected and shocking consequences for her future. Their extraordinary adventures in Oz will ultimately lead them to fulfill their destinies as Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.
Check back soon for our others Evil interviews here:
-
Ethan Slater and Marissa Bode
-
Winnie Holzman and Stephen Schwartz
Source: Screen Rant Plus