Wicked director Jon M. Chu wants fans to remember that Dorothy isn’t a major character in For Good.
“I didn’t want to step on who you think Dorothy is in whatever story that you came into this with,” Chu, 45, told People in an interview published on Wednesday, October 29.
Chu confirmed that the audience will never actually see Dorothy’s face in the movie despite the character making an appearance on screen. He added that the film “is still Elphaba and Glinda’s journey, and [Dorothy] is a pawn in the middle of all of it.”
Instead, the Wizard of Oz’s central figure will play a role similar to that in the Broadway play, where Dorothy only appears in shadows and mentions from other characters.
Chu previously confirmed that the role of Dorothy was cast but didn’t offer any clues to the actress’ identity.
“Well, we definitely did cast Dorothy. You see her in some of our teasers,” he told Cinema Blend in December 2024. “How much of do you see of Dorothy? … I can’t confirm or deny how much you see of her. I will say that I do think it’s important for, whoever Dorothy is to you, to try to respect that as much as possible. But does The Wizard of Oz and our movie intersect in movie two more than ever? 100 percent.”
Ariana Grande, who stars in Wicked and Wicked: For Good as Glinda, teased earlier this year that there would be a complicated dynamic between her character and Dorothy.
“I love the little bit of shadiness that Glinda has towards Dorothy,” Grande, 32, told Empire at the time. “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 fans got a first look at Dorothy’s arrival in Oz during the sequel’s trailer. A glimpse of the Kansas native can be seen standing alongside her pals, the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion as they approach The Wizard.
Following the release of the trailer, fans took to social media in an attempt to solve the mystery of Dorothy. Names like Alisha Weir, Maddie Ziegler, Dove Cameron, Emily Rudd and more were thrown in the mix.
While Dorothy’s casting has yet to be revealed, it was confirmed that Colman Domingo will voice the Cowardly Lion. Days before revealing Domingo’s identity, Chu teased that there was a big name attached to the role.
“I was like, ‘It’s not a ton of lines, but maybe you have a little time. I know you’re busy. I’ll come to you,” Chu told Deadline earlier this month. “He was like, ‘Why the f*** not, let’s go!’ And then we went ahead and recorded the lines.”
As for the Scarecrow and Tin Man, fans of the Wicked musical know that Jonathan Bailey’s character, Fiyero, turns into the Scarecrow while Ethan Slater’s Boq will ultimately transform into the Tin Man.
Wicked: For Good hits theaters on November 21.
