Two films are being made out of the Wicked stage musical. The first film alone is the same length as the entire show.
Universal is taking an interesting but perhaps not unwise approach to the marketing of its incoming Wicked movie. The film, which is finally coming to the screen after years of development, takes the hugely successful stage musical and brings it to the big screen.
However, director Jon M Chu and his team have split the show into two films with the second Wicked film still due next year. Note that nowhere on the poster or recent trailers for the film does it forewarn you that there’s another movie due in 12 months.
Case in point…
To the movie arriving this week, then. It looks like – and I’m saying this without seeing the film – that they really did struggle to get it all in one feature.
The running time of the stage show, without taking into account the interval, is 150 minutes.
The running time of the first of the Wicked movies? That’s now confirmed at 160 minutes, including credits. Let’s say that the second Wicked film comes in, for argument’s sake, at two hours. It means that a two and a half hour stage production will have been turned into five and a half hours of screen time.
Of course, this may all make sense once the films themselves have been screened. Again, I’ve not seen the first Wicked film, but early responses I’ve been hearing have been positive. It just struck me as a significant gap between – a really significant gap! – between the run time of the source material, and that of its adaptation.
The film’s now confirmed as getting a PG certificate in the UK, incidentally, and it’s landing in cinemas this weekend (with singalong screenings also confirmed to be landing in time for Christmas). The review embargo lifts in the next 24 hours, so more on the film imminently.
Currently, Wicked Part 2 is scheduled for 21st November 2025. Double bill screenings may require a few extra snacks…
