'Wicked: For Good' ends the suspense, reveals who'll play Dorothy in the upcoming film
Fans of the classic 'The Wizard of Oz' have been eagerly waiting for 'Wicked: For Good' to hit the theatres. Ahead of the film's impending release, Universal Pictures has finally revealed its casting choice for the character of Dorothy, immortalized in the original film by Judy Garland. It has now been confirmed that British actress Bethany Weaver shall be appearing in the film as Dorothy Gale, according to a report by ScreenRant. Despite being a central character, Dorothy's screen time in the movie is expected to be limited as the story will primarily focus on Elphaba and Glinda.
The first 'Wicked' movie, released in 2024, was a prequel to the events of the 1939 movie 'The Wizard of Oz'. 'Wicked: For Good', on the other hand, aims to be a retelling of the same narrative with a particular focus on the relationship between the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba, and the Good Witch, Glinda, based on the second act of the 2003 stage musical by Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman. The storyline will consist of Elphaba's quest to defy the Wizard and the subsequent aftermath of her actions. The character of Dorothy will be found on the margins of the narrative, and even her face wouldn't be directly revealed on-screen.
Nevertheless, Dorothy's ongoing struggle against Elphaba and her quest to have the latter's broom and submit it to the Wizard shall be treated as a necessary story arc. The casting for 'Wicked: For Good' features Ariana Grande as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba. Veteran actor Jeff Goldblum will take on the role of the Wizard. Apart from them, the entire entourage of Dorothy's supporting characters, such as the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, and the Scarecrow, will appear in the upcoming film.
Although Dorothy might be missing from large passages of 'Wicked: The Movie', the other supporting characters would be poised to provide audiences with the familiar flavour of the original movie. In terms of the upcoming movie being a retelling or reimagination of the classic narrative, 'Wicked: For Good' can be expected to highlight several alternative perspectives vis-à-vis the narrative point of view. This was repudiated by Erivo herself; during the course of commenting on Dorothy's reduced narrative importance, she had previously remarked, "I think that's such a wonderful thing to do because then everyone gets to keep the Dorothy that they know."
Similarly, Grande had also shared her insights into her character's relationship with Dorothy: "I love the little bit of shadiness that Glinda has towards Dorothy. There's a lot going on, and she doesn't really have time to deal with this. She could have told her to take the Emerald City train! But she didn't. That's a little shady, Glinda! So I leaned all the way into Glinda sort of having an eye roll for Dorothy whenever she has to deal with her." 'Wicked: For Good' arrives in theatres on November 21.