When Does “Wicked: For Good ”Come Out?“ ”All the Details on the Musical’s Second Act

The next chapter of Wicked is almost here.

After a year-long wait, Wicked: For Good flies into theaters on Nov. 21, and if the trailer is any indication, Elphaba and Glinda are ready to defy gravity once again. Only this time, their friendship and the fate of Oz hang in the balance.

In April 2022, director Jon M. Chu announced on X that the film adaptation of the long-running Broadway musical — which was an adaptation of Gregory Maguire’s 1995 book Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West — would be split into two parts.

“As we prepared this production over last year, it became increasingly clear that it would be impossible to wrestle the story of WICKED into a single film without doing some real damage to it,” the Crazy Rich Asians director wrote, noting that it would have involved cutting songs or trimming characters.

“So we decided to give ourselves a bigger canvas and make not just one WICKED movie but TWO!!!!! With more space, we can tell the story of WICKED as it was meant to be told while bringing even more depth and surprise to the journeys of these beloved characters,” he wrote. 

Here’s everything to know about Wicked: For Good, starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda

Why is Wicked in two parts? 

Screenwriter Winnie Holzman told ScreenRant in November 2024 that there were “long conversations” between her, Chu, composer Stephen Schwartz and producer Marc Platt about whether or not to split Wicked into two parts. Eventually, they all agreed there was “too much story for one movie.” 

“We wanted the fun, and the whole artistic fulfillment of being able to make these movies was to be able to explore our story and our characters with a little bit more depth,” Holzman said. “As we’re doing that, it’s adding up. And nobody wanted to cut any songs — in fact, we wanted to add songs.”

This decision means that Wicked also follows the original Broadway production’s two-part act. Just as the song “Defying Gravity” closes the curtain on Act 1 on stage, it also signals the end of the first movie. Schwartz said that iconic number was also a part of the decision to break the film into two parts.

“We found it very difficult to get past ‘Defying Gravity’ without a break,” the composer told a fan newsletter called The Schwartz Scene in 2022. “That song is written specifically to bring a curtain down, and whatever scene to follow it without a break just seemed hugely anti-climactic.”

What is Wicked: For Good about?

Wicked: For Good is expected to follow a similar plot structure as the Broadway musical. The first Wicked movie is a prequel to the 1939 Judy Garland movie The Wizard of Oz, while the second details the same events of the film but from the perspective of Elphaba.

“The first tells how Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the West,” Marc Platt wrote in production notes, “and the second tells how her best friend, Glinda, becomes authentically good.”

According to the movie’s official logline (per Variety), the sequel will “cover the events of the musical’s second act, following Elphaba and Glinda’s friendship being put to the test as they embrace their new respective identities as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch of the North, and how the consequences of their actions will change all of Oz forever.”

In a November 2024 interview with ScreenRant, Chu teased the potential of The Wizard of Oz protagonist Dorothy being involved in Wicked: For Good.

However, Chu later confirmed to PEOPLE that the iconic character’s face will not be shown in the film. “I didn’t want to step on who you think Dorothy is in whatever story that you came into this with,” he said in October 2025. “[This] is still Elphaba and Glinda’s journey, and she is a pawn in the middle of all of it.”

Is there a trailer for Wicked: For Good? 

The first full trailer for Wicked: For Good was released on June 4, 2025.

When the trailer opens, Glinda can be seen getting ready for her wedding to Fiyero when the glass on her balcony door begins to crack, letting her know that Elphaba is near.

“There’s no going back,” Elphaba can be heard saying. “This is between us, the wizard and I.”

The rest of the footage is a whirlwind of flying monkeys, the Wizard pulling more puppet strings behind the scenes and Elphaba evading mobs with torches as she and Glinda try to reconcile it all with a snippet of “For Good” playing in the background.

Which cast members are returning for Wicked: For Good?

Erivo and Grande are returning in their roles of Elphaba and Glinda, respectively, and the rest of the Wicked cast — including Jonathan Bailey, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater, Jeff Goldblum and Marissa Bode — is also coming back.

Variety also announced in October 2025 that Colman Domingo would voice the Cowardly Lion.

When did filming for Wicked: For Good finish?

Filming for the two-part live-action adaptation of Wicked wrapped in January 2024. Erivo confirmed the news on Instagram with a photo of her silhouette in Elphaba’s costume suspended by wires in mid-air. 

“I’ve been trying to think of what I’d say when this day finally came,” the actress wrote in the caption. “THIS moment, this film, these people, this cast, this crew, this director, my Glinda, were the Grandest gift I could ever have asked for, and I am eternally grateful for the chance to bring you This Elphie.”

She continued, “I hope when you meet her, you’ll love her as much and as fiercely as I do. And with that I say, that’s a wrap for me, Elphie out!! 💚💚💚.”

When will Wicked: For Good be released?

The second act of Wicked will be released on Nov. 21, 2025. The first movie is available to stream on Peacock.