Everyone thinks they know the story of Oz. You've got the ruby slippers, the yellow brick road, and that terrifying floating head behind a curtain. But honestly, the Wizard of Oz new movie—split into the two-part Wicked epic—has basically flipped the script on everything we thought was "canon."
It’s 2026. We’ve seen Wicked: Part One (2024) become a massive cultural juggernaut, and now Wicked: For Good (2025) has finally closed the loop on Elphaba’s journey. If you missed the chaos of the last two years, you might be confused about why there are suddenly two witches where there used to be one, or why the Wizard looks suspiciously like Jeff Goldblum.
What most people get wrong about the new Oz movies
People kept asking if this was a remake of the 1939 classic. It's not. It’s actually a prequel that eventually crashes right into the events of the original story. Think of it like a parallel timeline. Director Jon M. Chu didn't just want to recreate the movie we watched on VHS as kids; he wanted to adapt the Broadway musical, which itself was based on Gregory Maguire’s much darker 1995 novel.
The biggest shocker for casual fans? Dorothy Gale isn't the hero. She’s barely in the first movie, only showing up as a pivotal, world-changing arrival in Wicked: For Good.
🔗 Read more: Cry Havoc: Why Jack Carr Just Changed the Reece-verse Forever
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande aren't just playing roles; they've basically redefined Elphaba and Glinda for a new generation. Erivo’s Elphaba isn't "wicked" because she wants to be. She's a political dissident. She’s an activist. She’s a woman who saw the Wizard’s regime for the fraud it was—literally a "wise old carney" trading in blarney—and decided to fight back.
The separation of the story
Jon M. Chu made a controversial call early on to split the film into two parts.
- Part One (released November 22, 2024) covered the Shiz University years and ended with the iconic "Defying Gravity" sequence.
- Part Two, titled Wicked: For Good (released November 21, 2025), dove into the darker, more political fallout of Elphaba’s rebellion.
Why the split? Chu argued that cutting songs or trimming characters felt like "fatal compromises." By giving the story five hours of screen time across two films, we actually got to see things the Broadway show only hinted at. We saw the plight of the Animals in Oz. We saw the rise of the Tin Man (Boq) and the Scarecrow (Fiyero) in ways that felt heartbreaking rather than just "part of the legend."
💡 You might also like: Colin Macrae Below Deck: Why the Fan-Favorite Engineer Finally Walked Away
Why Wicked: For Good changed the game
The sequel didn't just repeat the stage play. It added brand-new music from Stephen Schwartz, the original composer. There's a new solo for Elphaba called "No Place Like Home"—a direct, bittersweet nod to Dorothy's future catchphrase—where she tries to protect animals escaping via a tunnel under the Yellow Brick Road.
Glinda also got a new song, "The Girl in the Bubble." It's a surprisingly deep look at her internal crisis. She’s stuck in this public persona of "Glinda the Good," literally floating above the people in a mechanical bubble gifted by the Wizard to hide her "magical deficiencies." It's a far cry from the perfect, sparkling witch we saw in 1939.
The Wizard of Oz new movie vs. the 1939 classic
Comparing the two is kinda like comparing a comic book to its gritty reboot. The new movie stays true to some visual cues—the green skin, the tall hat, the bubble—but the context is entirely different.
📖 Related: Cómo salvar a tu favorito: La verdad sobre la votación de La Casa de los Famosos Colombia
- The Green Skin: In the 1939 film, it was just a "witch" look. In the new movies, it’s a source of lifelong trauma and social ostracization for Elphaba.
- The Wizard: Jeff Goldblum plays him as a charismatic but deeply insecure man who uses propaganda to keep power. He’s less of a "humbug" and more of a dangerous populist.
- The Ending: If you've only seen the original movie, the ending of Wicked: For Good might wreck you. The film reveals that Elphaba and Glinda were best friends who orchestrated a massive deception just so Elphaba could survive.
Honestly, the chemistry between Grande and Erivo is what saved this from being just another CGI-heavy reboot. They actually sang live on set. No lip-syncing to pre-recorded tracks. You can hear the grit and the breath in their voices, especially during the "For Good" duet, which was filmed in a way that feels uncomfortably intimate.
What's actually happening in 2026?
If you're looking for even more Oz content now that the Wicked films are out, there are two major things on the horizon. First, there’s the The Wizard of Oz at Sphere in Las Vegas. It’s an immersive 4D re-release of the 1939 film that uses 16K resolution and AI-enhanced landscapes to "fill out" the world on a 160,000-square-foot screen. It’s polarizing, sure, but it’s the closest you’ll get to actually walking into Munchkinland.
Second, Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company is releasing a massive documentary later this year about the making of the original 1939 film. It’s supposed to feature never-before-seen footage and dive into the "enduring legacy" of why we're still obsessed with this world nearly 90 years later.
Practical next steps for Oz fans
If you've just finished the movies and want to dive deeper, here's how to actually navigate the lore:
- Watch the movies in order: Start with Wicked (Part 1) and then Wicked: For Good. Don't skip to the 1939 version yet; let the prequel story breathe.
- Listen to the "Live on Set" soundtrack: Universal released a special edition of the soundtrack featuring the actual live takes from the filming, which sounds much raw-er than the polished studio versions.
- Read the source material: If the movies felt too "bright" for you, go back to Gregory Maguire's novel. It's much more political and definitely not for kids.
- Check out the Las Vegas Sphere show: If you're near Nevada before March 31, 2026, the 4D experience is a technical marvel, even if the AI-generated backgrounds are a bit "uncanny valley" for some.
The Wizard of Oz new movie saga has officially wrapped up, but it has completely changed how we view the "villains" and "heroes" of our childhood. It turns out the Wicked Witch wasn't the problem—it was the man behind the curtain all along.