Wicked director reveals original idea for Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth cameo
Jon M Chu has revealed his original ideas for bringing Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth into 'Wicked'.
Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth were almost cast as Galinda's parents in 'Wicked'.
The two actresses - who originated the roles of Elphaba and Galinda when the iconic musical debuted on Broadway in 2003 - were brought back for a special appearance in the recent blockbuster film adaptation as they performed 'One Short Day' with successors Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.
Reflecting on his ideas for the appearance, filmmaker Jon M. Chu told CinemaBlend: "It was a tightrope that we all had to talk about a lot, with Stephen [Schwartz] and Winnie [Holzman] as well, where’s the best place.
“And we had them as cameo roles at some point, like, ‘maybe they’re Galinda’s parents’ or ‘maybe they’re this or that.’
"And those were all fine and good, but every time we thought of it more, it didn’t feel — they’re at the top of their game right now."
The director insisted that fans would want to see the duo "do their thing", rather than be reduced to a brief background appearance.
He added: "They’re not like some people who don’t do it there.
"[If] they are there, you want them to do their thing, and I always felt like as a fan myself, if I see them in this movie, I’m going to want them to do their thing."
He then conceived the idea inspired by Disney attraction 'It's A Small World', where Elphaba and Galinda would arrive in Oz and be taken "through the history" of the land, which didn't feature in the stage production.
Chu explained: “And it was during those conversations that Stephen and I were talking, and I suggested, ‘We have this section anyway, that’s sort of outside of the narrative that we need to give. Maybe that’s where you do it, so you can add a little sugar to the information.’
"And he was like, ‘Give me one night.’ And he rewrote the whole thing as a performance for these girls.
"It was so fun, that’s where it felt like this is a great moment of sort of a send-off.”
Last month, it was confirmed the upcoming sequel to 'Wicked' - based on the second half of the stage show - will now be titled 'Wicked: For Good', despite the Universal Pictures movie initially being announced as 'Wicked: Part Two'.
Grande and Erivo took to Instagram before Christmas to share the new title, reposing a clip from the official 'Wicked' account.
The caption read: "You will be changed. 'Wicked: For Good', only in theaters November 21, 2025."
'Wicked' – which was directed by Jon M. Chu and also stars Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Jonathan Bailey, Peter Dinklage and Ethan Slater – follows Elphaba and Glinda as they try to find their place at Shiz University, only for their friendship to be put in jeopardy once the Wizard of Oz forces the pair's paths to diverge.
'Wicked: For Good' will pick up after Elphaba rejects the Wizard of Oz's pleas and sings the iconic number 'Defying Gravity', which Erivo, 37, said was a "huge responsibility".
Speaking to 'Maria' star Angelina Jolie for Variety's Actors on Actors series, Erivo said: "There was this huge responsibility, because it's such a well-known song. And people know it; people love it. I really wanted to mean it."
