I'm not quite sure where to put this. I know for a fact that Universal has the rights to the musical to make a film of it, but ABC owns the book rights, and are planning on making a miniseries of the novel. I think it's amazing. I can soooo see the novel as a tv drama and the musical as a Box office hit. The last I heard they wanted Demi More for Elphie for the miniseries. Does anyone have any more info on this?

Dont think Id want to see it...
Demi more..not a fan

Done right, the musical as a film could be amazing/a HUGE box office hit.
Done as a ABC mini-series, I barf all over the place. Seriously, the story would need HBO-- nothing more, and nothing less. Make a season long movie out of it, without Demi Moore, and it can be GOOD.

This was news back when the book first came out. I don't think Demi Moore was going to do the movie but she had partial ownership to the rights of the book. Don't know if this is ever going to come about. Haven't heard mention of it for a long time.

Yep, I'd watch that, being me.

Demi Moore. No.

I've heard this news a while back...but it said there was talk of two movies- one based on the book and the other based on the musical.

Source?

I still think they're going to wait quite a while.

Stop posting things like this... it gets me all excited and I don't know if it is true or not!! :-( haha I'm just kidding but they need to be very careful in deciding how they will present this as a movie or even a tv show! Does anyone know where all this information is coming I really want to read about it!

It's all old info but what no one seems get is the musical WILL be a movie. It has been said by several of the creators that Universal is making it into a film. To be honest I do not get why people are against it. Wicked is the perfect matirial for a movie and will be the best movie musical in a while. No one loves the show more than I do but people need to lighten up on the idea of a movie (which isnt an idea becuase it is happening). When it is a movie it will be a hit. As far as a TV movie of the novel, I think the novel is the perfect thing to turn into a drama. It is so dark and emotional and all the things TV movies are made of. Just as the musical is all the things movie musicals are made of. So lets be optomistic and wait for Wicked to create another chapter in it's history becuase lets not forget, it was going to be a movie before it was a musical.

Didn't everyone think that the Producers, and RENT were going to be hit.

To be honest I think Wicked is slightly different.

See, part of me wants to say. Psch. This will never happen. But then I remember saying the same thing about Idina in London, and more revently Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal coming back to Rent. So I'm not betting on anything anymore. :ha:

Would I want to see a movie or mini-series? Yes and no. I love the book. I actually prefer it to the musical(gasp!). I think it would have to be a mini-series to actually put all the detail it needs to be powerful in it- or a very, very long movie. I would not want it to be a TV movie- those always seem so over-the-top to me. In a way, I'd be alittle woried. It would be billed as a prequal to the Wizard of Oz, and I'm worried they would make it too... I don't know, cheesy.

As for a movie-musical. See, I like the idea of it. Mostly, as I'm sure there are many other people like me who haven't actually seen the stageshow(other than *coughhrmphcough*). It would make it more accesible.

But I'm worried that the decidedly negative response to Rent and The Producers would affect it. I'm worried they will celebrity cast it, like Dreamgirls. And I don't think I'll be able to stand that. Because I can picture it: Brittany Spears, out of rehab and into Wicked! *shivers*

Note: Not bashing Brittany fans- I just really don't want a mainstream celebrity in this, and it to only be thought of as that 'Brittany Spears movie about the witches'.

I think the casting will have to be done very carefully, and I think the people in charge are aware of that. I hope they are, anyway.

I wouldn't mind celebrity casting for some roles; Morrible, the Wizard, Fiyero, sure. Elphaba, I'd love to have an unknown, like they did with Hairspray. Glinda would also ideally be an unknown, but a celeb could probably pull it off -- with the right casting. Honestly, I think the success of any movie based on either the book or the musical rests on the casting and the devotion of the creators' to the source material.

See, THAT'S what i would like to see! I would want there to be a Wicked movie based on the BOOK not musical because it would make it more, i dunno, very much more like a movie movie! If the musical was a movie, i think it would be very weird! I mean, it's not the same thing seeing Elphie fly right infront of your eyes between seeing it projected on the screen (or TV).....UNLESS they use almost the same script and plot for the movie musical, but make it more special effect crazy...like completely go away from the musical staging and make it have like amazing MOVIE sets with super detail and have lots of digital effects! THEN it would be amazing and MIGHT compare to the stage version!

:agree: you are totally right

Thanks! I already had a vision almost like a prophesy! I know it sounds truly crazy....and true, the visions hazy....but i swear someday there'll be a celebration thoughout the world....that's all to do....with the Wicked MooooooovieeeeeeEEEEeeeEeeeeEEEE! LOL a little Eden rifing there....

I think a movie, or tv series, based on the BOOK would be incredible, if it was done well.

I agree....i think the musical should stay a musical, not movie......UNLESS they make it SLIGHTLY differ from the stage version with better effects and make it look more "real" Oz world and stuff and amazing effects! THEN i would love the musical as a movie!

I think they will wait longer. Right now, I dont know if I would believe the special effects for a TV show. I mean, look at any TV show, none of them spend millions of dollars on special effects and I dont know about the rest of you. But if my Elphaba turns 3-D when flying, we have a serious problem. Maybe in a few years...

Wicked would be different in almost every way. RENT and The Producers are both insanely popular, but don't have, exactly, the same established name recognition and fan base that Wicked has. Wicked: The Movie will be something like a prequel/sequel/spin-off of the Wizard of Oz... that already has a huge, huge fan base. And TWoO is one of the most popular movies of all time, already, so the draw would be even more.
Part of me thinks that the reason there hasn't been a Wicked movie yet is that they're still trying to figure out how to do Defying Gravity without looking cheesy.
And, I have to say, I hope they pull a WoO, and change the ending. No more "it worked?"... I can hope, lol.

I love that you already know this about a movie that is completely non existent and isn't even close to pre-production stages. If done well and with the right cast, it will succeed. But it could easily be done badly. But besides that, it'll be LONG while before a movie is ever made.

And the book's rights were bought a long time ago to be made into a ABC movie/miniseries. ABC already bought and made a movie of Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister.

History in film has shown that any film that marks itself as a sequal to, specifically, the 1939 version of The Wizard of Oz has ultimately failed. It's the Movie that cannot be touched. It's suicide to try and make a movie like that, either a prequal or a sequal. I don't doubt that Wicked could make a good movie, but I don't hold much hope for it. I would still see it, though.

Am I the only one selfish enough not to give a flying monkey's whether a movie of the show'd be blockbusting, and to just want it to watch at home, like Rent?

No i ment it would be cool if it was a full out Movie Thearter movie, not TV movie, they're all so cheap!

Yes howver, Wicked teh musical has very littel to do with the actual Wizard of Oz story line. It is about a whole different character. I realize we each have our own opinions, but i think it would be genious to film the musical version as a kotion picture and to make the novel into a TV drama. Someoene mentioned earlier that Rent and the Producers were A: not as big as Wicked and B: filmed exactly like the stage shows. That would not be the case with Wicked. Wicked is the perfect matirial for a film.

Musicals have trouble translating well into film, period. It's one matter to ask us to believe the fantasy aspect of it, but to have characters burst out into song sometimes asks too much out of people. Some, not all. Also, it may be disconnected from The Wizard of Oz, but no one here can say that this musical would be doing half as well if it weren't for the 1939 Movie. It plays off of a character we all knew from our childhood. To connect it to that means treading dangerous waters. Yes, Wicked, as a musical, has been widely accepted. To contribute, a lot of that is due to the fact that it's been part of a separate medium than the famous Movie.

Do not underestimate the influence of the major Oz fanatics. Almost every American grew up with The Wizard of Oz. To ask them to look at that as the "false story" will upset a lot of people - especially the adults.

I'd rather see an adaptation of Maguire's original book, myself. However, we know that a parent will still take their child to go see it. With it being a Rated R story, it would flop and drown.

I dont know how I feel about this whole movie talk.

I personally would rather see the musical adapted into a movie and not a TV series. I also dont know if anyone would like the novel adapted into a movie.

Don't get me wrong, I think the novel is brilliant, but with many "rated R" subjects and it might not apeal to such a large crowd as the musical does.

All I know is, any type of movie wont happen for a while.

Sure, it'd be treading dangerous waters, and it easily could go either way, I don't think anyone's denying that, but if it went the positive way, the pay off could be huge. "Wicked" the musical is a re-imagining of Baum's novel the same way the 1939 film is a re-imagining of the book and the original silent film.
Part of Wicked's success as a movie has already been "proven" with the appeal of the musical. Sure, some purists might have problems, but others, like me and many people on this board, love it passionately (even more so than the original film, actually), but even people who grew up with the WoO and think it's silly/lame can like the idea of the whole story being half the story/the Witch as the good guy.
I think, even if the eventual movie is half as good as the musical, it won't flop.... all, I think, depends on the quality of the actual movie...

even though i think this would be good and its exciting i dont think they need to make a movie of this just yet its still huge on broadway and shure it would get a bigger audience and draw more people i dont think it needs to at this point

i would really love a wicked movie done the way that into the woods was done. I would like to see it as a Big budget, super well done, plot changed movie or a small DVD kind of thing almost like a //taping of the show like into the woods. like someone already said, i dont really care if its a huge hit among everyone, but i want a movie of the show. also...the discussion came up about the faact that WoO has a huge fanbase then someone argued that its too different to bring in those people..well, what do you think originally brought us into the musical...they VERY FIRST THING was hmm....i kinda know the story i want to go see it before i ever knew the actors