Is Katharine McPhee Elphaba in the "Wicked" movie?

[JBC3]

Patti and Bernadette will star.

[Dave28282]

gypsy101 said: "I will be so sad if Demi does not star in this, I think she is one of the only actresses who fits the character and would sing the hell out of the score."

I agree.

This is basically the perfect audition for the role: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5qULV6x_cE

She has the right voice, her type fits the character and most of all, she knows how to act through song instead of in spite of song. There is no apologizing in her acting through notes. Which gives me shivers.

 

[Dave28282]

TotallyEffed said: "Gaga and only Gaga."

I think she would be great type wise, but vocally this role demands a different calibre.

It's not just because someone is a singer, the person is able to handle these type of roles. This is about mastering the craft of storytelling through notes instead of in spite of it and only very few singers are able to do that. I feel this material and the finesse in singing needed for it to make it feel truthful instead of separated is often underestimated.

Katharine McPhee would be a better fit then in my opinion.

[Mister Matt]

Cool. I was really hoping this would be identical to every other Wicked movie thread. I get so tired of reading new thoughts and ideas.

[darquegk]

If this is a big budget movie, there's one piece of obvious casting that the Broadway crowd keeps missing: Andy Serkis as Chistery and probably Dr. Dillamond too.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Call_me_jorge said: "Who’s the director attached? Is it still Daldry? Or Chazelle?"

Stephen Daldry

[Elfuhbuh]

I imagine it’s still Daldry, especially since it doesn’t look like that Obi-Wan film is happening.

[BwayLB]

JBC3 said: "Patti and Bernadette will star."

I rather see them paired up in something else

[JSquared2]

gypsy101 said: "SomeOtherMe said: "I've heard numerous times from somewho actually know a few Wicked people that they were trying to get Demi Lovato for the role. Maybe with her recent struggles, she has become unable to do so and they looked elsewhere?"

I will be so sad if Demi does not star in this, I think she is one of the only actresses who fits the character and wouldsing the hell out of the score."

 

Not a chance of this happening.  No insurance company would cover her, she almost died from an OD a few weeks ago.

[standingovation79]

this should be a cartoon al la Beauty and the Beast. Cut most of the songs and expand the story.  Make it the next great Disney-esque musical.  The only time Oz has every worked on screen is the original film. Plus the cheesy nature of a lot of the moments in wicked could play so much more fun in animation. It could also have really beautiful moments....get Idina and Christin to voice them at one point.....live action is going to be ridiculously bad.

[adamgreer]

There’s not a chance anyone will take a risk on Lovato right now.

I also doubt it’ll be Katharine McPhee.

[Call_me_jorge]

Love Lovato, but I hope she takes time to recover

[blaxx]

I doubt the Wicked movie happening more than the casting. Isn't yet another Oz horror film coming out soon?

The Oz universe is so saturated that the Wicked film would never live up to its hype. It will be as redundant and awkward as the ReNt or POTO films.

[Owen22]

The Oz universe is so saturated that the Wicked film would never live up to its hype. It will be as redundant and awkward as the ReNt or POTO films."

Not if they go back to the original book. Or change the second act. Some of that silliness would have to go for a serious film.  Especially the awful shoehorning in of "Wizard of Oz" characters. Like Boq being turned into the Tin Woodman. Or especially Fiyero as the Scarecrow, who would obviously NOT jump on the yellow brick road with Dorothy to go get a brain when he already knows that OZ is a humbug at best, evil at worst. He'd be on the next Flying Gump to the Winkie country to be with Elphaba! 

[BwayLB]

^ I have no big issue with Boq being Tin Man and Fiero being Scarecrow

[Owen22]

BwayLB said: "^ I have no big issue with Boq being Tin Man and Fiero being Scarecrow"

Well, these plot points don't make much sense do they?  The nasty scene where Boq basically yells to the crowd to lynch Elphaba is hardly the kindly Nick Chopper from the original story and film. And I already discussed how making Fiyero the Scarecrow makes absolutely no character sense...

[EmeraldOzian]

Nobody has been cast.

Schwartz last mentioned that they are looking for legitimate actresses who can sing soprano and belt for the leads. I expect new comers to be cast when originating the roles for the film version.

There is enough roles to stunt cast with the supporting actors who don't require intensive vocals. You can have an all star cast and two unknown singing or theatre background leads if you go for A list Stars for Fiyero, Morrible, Wizard, Boq, Dillamond and Nessa.

 

They would be wise to sign up Zac Efron as Fiyero before he gets too old to look college aged anymore, dare I even say Zendaya as Nessa it worked as a winning formula before and their stars are at the pinnacle of their musical movie careers at the moment.

[Dave28282]

EmeraldOzian said: "Schwartz last mentioned that they are looking for legitimate actresses who can sing soprano and belt for the leads."

Legitimate acting in this artform comes from legitimate singers, because only then the acting through notes feels truthful.

So it's  a strange way to put it. It sounds like they are already preparing to apologize for the singing by separating it from the acting.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Owen22 said: "Well, these plot points don't make much sense do they? The nasty scene where Boq basically yells to the crowd to lynch Elphaba is hardly the kindly Nick Chopper from the original story and film. And I already discussed how making Fiyero the Scarecrow makes absolutely no character sense..."

And Elphaba is hardly the character from the original story and film. That's the whole point of the piece.

And while I don't particularly care for the ending of the musical, the idea that the Scarecrow was Fiyero is not entirely out of the blue, since in the novel Elphaba did think that was a possibility for a bit.

[Roland von Berlin]

Doesn't Elphaba need a more energetic performer?

[Owen22]

AEA AGMA SM said: "Owen22 said: "Well, these plot points don't make much sense do they? The nasty scene where Boq basically yells to the crowd to lynch Elphaba is hardly the kindly Nick Chopper from the original story and film. And I already discussed how making Fiyero the Scarecrow makes absolutely no character sense..."

And Elphaba is hardly the character from the original story and film. That's the whole point of the piece.

And while I don't particularly care for the ending of the musical, the idea that the Scarecrow was Fiyero is not entirely out of the blue, since in the novel Elphaba did think that was a possibility for a bit."

No, the death of Fiyero in the book (and musical) and her sister's death (and Glinda's giving away Nessarose's shoes) drives Elphaba a little bit insane for awhile. Making her "wicked". There is nothing character and action-wise contradictory really between L Frank Baum's Elphaba and Wicked's.

And Elphaba, in her madness, does think Fiyero might be a Scarecrow in the book.  But what I"m talking about is making the Scarecrow from Baum's book and the MGM film reconcile character-wise with the musical Wicked's Fiyero. Which it doesn't. At all.

 

[darquegk]

It's been a while since I read Maguire's novel, but doesn't the musical hint that the widely-accepted story of "The Wizard of Oz" is in-universe propaganda?

[Elegance101]

Many of the changes from the book seem to make this story exist in the same universe as the Oz movie, not the original book. For commercial reasons, there’s no way they’ll remove any of the shoe-horning or references to the movie. That’s honestly an enjoyable part of the musical.

Also, I completely agree with a few posts above me, get A listers in supporting roles and two newcomers for the leads. Hold an open call, even. They do not need names in the two leads if they have major star power in the supporting roles and because this is an extremely well-known musical based on an even better-known property. I truly hope to see names I’ve never heard of before in the two leads.

[finebydesign]

"I can assure you when the leads of the film of Wicked are announced, it won’t be in the form of the stars issuing a tweet."

 

Seriously? Do you know anything about social media marketing? If someone like Dwayne Johnson or Ariana Grande gets cast studios want them to have the scoop.  I don't think McFee has enough of a fanbase but A-listers are part of the marketing campaigns.  I'm not saying it moves the needle, but studios sure do.  

[QueenAlice]

finebydesign said: ""I can assure you when the leads of the film of Wicked are announced, it won’t be in the form of the stars issuing a tweet."



Seriously? Do you know anything about social media marketing? If someone like Dwayne Johnson or Ariana Grande gets cast studios want them to have the scoop. I don't think McFee has enough of a fanbase but A-listers are part of the marketing campaigns. I'm not saying it moves the needle, but studios sure do."

Yes, Dear, I do. I also know a little something about Universal Pictures and their (preliminary) plans to market the film. They are planning to do a major press event to announce the stars of the film - whenever that happens.  But for now, nobody has been cast. Nobody has even been tested yet.  Not for any role. So there is nothing to announce or even theorize at this point.