Once upon a time, in the land of Oz, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg were vying for the right to go green as the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba. That's right: before Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo were cast in the movie musical version of Wicked, several other actresses were vying for roles in what would have resulted in a very different movie than the one we got.
In a new story from Vanity Fair, producer Marc Platt (and several other key members of the production) broke down the many different iterations of the film that almost came to be during its long development journey.
It took decades to adapt Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel of the same name for the big screen, and throughout that process several things could have resulted in a very different movie making its way to audiences.
For example: did you know that, for most of the time it was in development, they considered doing it as a straight drama without music?
It's true: Platt and his team were years into the process of trying to bring the Wicked Witch of the West's story to theaters before they were approached by composer Stephen Schwartz to try and make it a musical stage show first.
According to Platt, the film iteration was already in development when he became the head of Universal Pictures, noting that the book "had been optioned initially by Demi Moore's company."
According to novelist Macguire, "People who had expressed an interest in the first six months included Whoopi Goldberg and Claire Danes. Salma Hayek had had some interest, and Laurie Metcalf.”
But it was Moore and her company, Moving Pictures, that pursued the rights the hardest, with the actress hoping to tackle the role of Elphaba. According to her producing partner Suzanne Todd, "I think on different days she could do either, but in the moment it was definitely for Elphaba."
"I used to say, I can imagine Demi Moore naked and green on the cover of Vanity Fair," added Macguire.
But who would have played the Glinda to Moore's Elphaba? Todd confirmed that, "at the time, there were a few people top of mind: Michelle Pfeiffer, Emma Thompson, Nicole Kidman."
It wasn't until a few years later that Schwartz's musical dreams became a reality. It's also what cracked the biggest script issues that came with adapting the dense and internal-monologue-heavy novel.
As Platt put it: "In a musical, a character can turn to the audience—or the camera—and sing what he or she or they is feeling. That opened up a door of storytelling." And thus, the road to Wicked becoming the mega-hit Broadway musical that it was began. It premiered in 2003 with Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth in the roles of Elphaba and Glinda, respectively.
And it was all thanks to the musical's mega-hit success that the fully realized iteration of Wicked we know and love today came to be. So while we're sure the Demi Moore or Whoopi Goldberg versions of Wicked would have been something to see, we're sorta happy with what ended up on screen.
