WICKED: Broadway hit set for Film Adaptation

The hit musical Wicked has officially won a date with Hollywood. The blockbuster stage phenom has been given a 2016 release date and will be produced by Marc Platt. Platt recently produced another musical turned motion picture, Into the Woods.

In an impromptu interview with Film Divider, Platt confirmed his intention to help transition the musical, saying, “[A 2016 release date] is the goal, but I don’t know whether we’ll make that goal or not,”

Adding,

“It’s a loose goal. But the bar is very high for the creators of Wicked. Our show is still so strong everywhere, and we just set a record in both London and Edinburgh last week, and in Los Angeles, and we did on Broadway. Audiences enjoy that show so much that we are intending to move forward on the movie but aren’t going to do so until we’re satisfied in the material we have as a screenplay, and that the film will be every bit as satisfying as what we have on the stage.”

Platt also confirmed that Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot) will direct.

The hit musical is based on the Gregory Maguire book ‘Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West’ (1995). The musical has broken several records since its debut in 2003, claiming 2.7 million dollars over the New Year weekend alone, making it the highest grossing eight performance week in Broadway history. With box office success like that it really isn’t surprising to see producers jumping at the chance to make this- the next Le mis.

The move is a promising one for a series that has given audiences so much. Starting with, the original Wizard of Oz (1939), a film which has become a cinematic icon, along with a 2013 sequel Oz the Great and Powerful.  

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Sources: Imdb, Yahoo!, Variety, Film Divider