Wicked: For Good (2025)

Are we all wicked yet?
Let’s start by showing y’all the trailers, shall we? 🎬✨

Warning ⚠️, if some y’all dont like anything relating to propaganda or find the subject of it to be uncomfortable then this film might not be for you, just warning y’all.

I also wanna quickly mention, people have already called this film “a failure” and “a disappointment” i strongly disagree, because if it was disappointing it would have had to be an inaccurate adaptation or something like that, instead its faithful to the second half of the Broadway down to a T, it is faithful, painfully faithful, almost too faithful.

And that in its self is a problem because the second half of the book and Broadway is flawed, but disappointment? Nah, I got what I expected after doing research on the Broadway and book before seeing this sequel, what do I mean by that? Well let’s find out.

⭐ Non-Spoiler Plot Overview 🍃

It’s been one full year since Wicked (2024) ended and left us dangling off that emotional cliff.
A whole year of waiting, theorizing, pacing around the house like a feral cat, and wondering if Part Two would stick the landing.

This was my second most anticipated movie of the year (the first being del Toro’s Frankenstein), and THANK GOD this one didn’t disappoint either.

Wicked: For Good picks up exactly where Part One left off. No time jump. Elphaba is now public enemy #1, the Wicked Witch in every propaganda poster across Oz, while Glinda is elevated into the sparkly PR-perfect “Glinda the Good.”

Meanwhile:

The Wizard doubles down on manipulation.

Madame Morrible continues being the human embodiment of a migraine.

Animals are being enslaved and silenced.

Dorothy has arrived (but we never see her face, smart choice).

Elphaba and Glinda’s friendship is hanging on by one fraying thread.


It’s darker.
It’s heavier.
It’s way more emotional.
And weirdly, this is the second propaganda-heavy movie I saw this week, after The Running Man.
So apparently it’s Propaganda Week for me.

This film is basically:
“What happens when a woman refuses to be who the world tells her to be?”
And the answer is: drama, trauma, flying monkeys, and heartbreak.


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🧍‍♀️ Character Rundown 💚

No encyclopedic tone — just who they are in this story.

Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo)

She carries this movie on her entire green back.
This version of Elphaba is exhausted, furious, heartbroken, and DONE letting Oz treat her like the villain they’ve invented.
Cynthia Erivo’s emotional range here? Brutal. You feel every gut punch.

Glinda (Ariana Grande)

She’s still sparkly, but now she’s suffocating under the weight of the “good witch” label.
She desperately wants to help — but she’s drowning in politics, performance, and her own guilt.
Her arc is messy on purpose.

Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey)

Our man goes through it.
He loves Elphaba, tries to protect her, pays the price for it, and becomes part of one of the emotional twists I DID NOT see coming.
Bailey sells every second.

Nessarose (Marissa Bode)

Oh boy.
Remember sweet, somewhat sympathetic Nessarose from Part One?
Yeah… buckle up.
Her descent is jarring, manipulative, selfish, and honestly hard to watch.
But in a good storytelling way.
She traps Boq in Munchkinland, emotionally manipulates him, plays the victim every time, and sets off a tragedy that spirals out of control.

Boq (Ethan Slater)

Justice for Boq.
He did not deserve ANY of this.
His transformation into the Tin Man is one of the most devastating things in the movie.
Not only because it’s terrifying, but because he’s begging for help the whole time — and no one listens.

The Cowardly Lion (voice: Colman Domingo)

Yes — that Colman Domingo.
Strand from Fear the Walking Dead.
He voices the lion… and honestly?
His “reason” for becoming cowardly makes ZERO sense, but we’ll get to that rant later.

The Wizard (Jeff Goldblum)

Peak sleazy politician energy.
He lies with a smile.
He manipulates with a shrug.
And he has one of the funniest lines in the movie:
“I don’t lie — I just verbally lie.”

Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh)

Still awful.
Still manipulative.
Still ready to imprison an entire population to maintain power.
Glinda FINALLY does something about her.


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⏱ Pacing / Episode Flow 🎶

It moves fast — sometimes too fast — but the emotional beats land harder than in Part One.

Part Two is:

darker

more urgent

more tragic

more chaotic

more political


Emotionally, this is the stronger film.
Narratively… hoo boy, there are some MESSY Wizard of Oz–forced moments the author clearly struggled with.

And yes, you can FEEL the exact moment the story hits the point where the book and Broadway were boxed in by Oz canon and the writing starts tripping over its own broomstick.


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💚 Pros 🌪

1. The emotional storytelling hits HARD

Boq’s transformation?
Fiyero’s fate?
The manipulation?
The propaganda?
The friendship breaking?
Devastating.

2. Cynthia Erivo is unreal

Her acting alone could power all of Emerald City.

3. The monkeys joining Elphaba is great

They’re freed, they choose to stay with her, and it genuinely adds heart.

4. The “For Good” sequence

Still the best song. Still the emotional killer. Still phenomenal.

5. Dorothy NEVER appears fully

Perfect choice.
Keeps the focus on Elphaba and Glinda.

6. The ending with Fiyero saving her

Chef’s kiss.
It’s the ideal payoff for their bond.

7. The political commentary

Heavy, blunt, uncomfortably relevant… but handled well.


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💔 Cons 🧹

1. The Wizard of Oz canon chains the story

You can feel the writing fall apart as soon as Dorothy enters.
Two specific moments are so clunky it’s wild they survived book, Broadway, AND movie.


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Clunky Moment #1 — Glinda giving Dorothy Nessarose’s shoes

Original movie line:
“She’s just a girl who’s lost and wants to go home.”

What does that have to do with giving a stranger your friend’s dead sister’s shoes??
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
It’s a non-answer.

Your fix (and it’s WAY better):
“I didn’t give them to her — the shoes magically attached themselves.”
→ Because THAT is what actually happened.


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Clunky Moment #2 — Elphaba telling Glinda: “Promise me you’ll never clear my name.”

Makes NO sense.
She’s fought propaganda the entire story… and then suddenly she’s like:

“Yeah okay let the world believe I’m evil so you can look good.”

YOUR better version:
“Let them think what they want. You don’t have to correct every rumor.”
→ This fits her morality and doesn’t rewrite her character at the last second.


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Clunky Moment #3 — The Cowardly Lion’s motive

He says he’s mad at Elphaba for “taking him from his only home.”

Sir??
Your only home was being abused and caged in a lab.
What are we talking about??

This line has never made sense — in the movie, the book, OR the play.


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4. Tin Man timeline problem

In Wizard of Oz, he says he rusted in the woods for a year.
In Wicked: For Good, none of this spans a year.
Boq transforms, grabs an axe, storms off… then shows up immediately with Dorothy.

Canon breaks everywhere.

Also why is it he all a sudden he has his axe when he comes out of Nessarose office? Oh right because he has one in the Wizard Of Oz, so gotta stick to the status quo.

If I haven’t said it enough, I do feel like as soon as the author of the book got to the part of the story where he has to connect this into the Wizard Of Oz, he started to become reckless and handicapped, because he felt he was stuck to the lore, but that doesn’t mean, you had to just lazily put things and say things that just don’t make any sense, like, like just having the tin man, have his axe, because he had it in the Wizard Of Oz.

Or Glindas answer to Elphaba asking why she gave Dorothy a stranger her dead sisters shoes? Because shes a lonely girl who wants to go home, thats nothing of an answer as ive stated. Again, i’m not a writer and I could come up with better ideas here than would have worked better. And not ruin the canon of wizard of oz. There is more flaws, but I’ll get to that in the spoilers.

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5. Some songs still don’t hit

Part Two is way more emotional, but musically?
It didn’t fully land for me until For Good.

🌀 A Note on the Tin Man’s Personality Shift (Not a Pro, Not a Con — Just… a Thing)

Okay, so here’s something that doesn’t sit right with me, but I also can’t call it a flaw. It’s just… weird. A choice. A very big choice.

In The Wizard of Oz, the Tin Man is basically the gentlest guy in the whole squad. The man is literally all “I’m peace, not war. Let’s help Dorothy. Let’s get you home safely. I don’t want any trouble.”

He’s wholesome. He’s soft. He cries oil. He’s basically a walking sheet of emotional support aluminum foil.

But in Wicked: For Good?
Uhhhhhhhhh…

The Tin Man wakes up like he just read a revenge monologue off Reddit. Suddenly he’s:
“The witch ruined my life. She took my heart. I am now a monster. DOWN WITH THE WITCH. LET’S GO LYNCH HER.”

It’s such a tonal whiplash that my brain double-checked its warranty.

And again — I’m not calling it bad. I’m not calling it good. It’s just such a massive personality pivot from the character we all know. Book Tin Man? Movie Tin Man? Soft cinnamon roll.
Wicked Tin Man? Full rage-arc, ready to grab a pitchfork and rally the villagers.

It’s one of those changes where your brain goes:
“Okay, I guess that’s happening now.”

Not a Pro.
Not a Con.
Just… noted.

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🌟 Final Thoughts ✨

Despite the messy Wizard of Oz canon moments, I love this film.

This year I waited 12 months for this movie.
I had Part One in my head the whole time.
I walked into the theater buzzing.
And I walked out genuinely moved.

This is the Wicked story I prefer over the original Oz — no question.

It’s darker.
It’s deeper.
It’s more emotional.
And it commits to showing how propaganda can destroy a person’s entire identity.

If you don’t like musicals — give it a chance.
If you don’t like heavy themes — fair warning, this one hits hard.
But if you loved Part One… this is everything you’ve been waiting for.

I’ll also end my final thoughts on saying this, even though I love this movie, I feel like this would have been the perfect time for them to fix up the parts that made zero sense in the broadway. And the book, but not instead, they just decided to adapt the lines and scenes that didnt even land well with fans of the Broadway and book.

⭐ Rating 🌈

8/10
A little messy, a little clunky in the canon moments, but emotionally phenomenal.

If you are wondering why i’m giving this an 8/10 that is because I have three core issues. Yeah my rating system is different.

Also, any complaints are gonna see. And already seen I firmly pin it and blame it all on the book author because this all originates from the book author, i don’t blame this film. I do not blame the actors. I don’t blame the director I don’t blame anyone who made this movie. No, those parts are great. It’s the story that’s a mess.


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⚠️ Spoiler Warning 🪣

Full spoilers below — and I go into every detail.


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💀 Spoilers (Full Detail) 🔥

Elphaba visits Glinda the night of her wedding.
The Wizard arrives, acting like a manipulative dad who thinks dancing will fix war crimes.
He tries to reel Elphaba back in, offering her a deal — he’ll release the flying monkeys and animals from captivity.

He lies.
Shocking.

The monkeys show her a hidden room full of caged animals.
This is the moment Elphaba snaps.
She vows to defeat him until her dying breath.

Animals storm the wedding.
Morrible screams “THIS IS THE WICKED WITCH’S DOING!”
Fiyero pulls a sword on the Wizard, locks him in the same cage he used on others, and escapes with Elphaba.

Then Nessarose, out of jealousy, flips through the spellbook trying to force Boq to love her.
The spell begins collapsing his heart — literally.
Metal creeps over his fingers.
He screams for help.
Elphaba drags Nessarose out of the room while trying desperately to find a spell to save him.
Boq breaks through the door with an axe and sees himself in the mirror — the Tin Man.
His cracked, devastated:
“What have you done to me?”
Broke me.

I will also say this though, it’s kind of funny though, not in a ha.Ha funny way more like in a. This is stupid funny way, that as soon as Elphaba fixes Boq which turns him into the Tin Man, instead of Elphaba coming out the room and showing sorrow or emotions she just basically wipes her hands and says hes resting, I gotta go.

Sorry what? Elphaba, the woman who fights for creatures and people of any shape ans sizes to have their rights and shows compassion for people, who has to save Boq from dying. Instead of showing amy emotions or sympathy she just walks out and essentially says, thats your problem sis, gotta go visit the wizard now, huh?

Later, the monkeys pledge themselves to Elphaba.
Fiyero gets captured, tortured in the cornfield, hung on a cross.
We only see flashes — him broken, bleeding, fading.
Elphaba tries a spell, and he turns into the Scarecrow.

Glinda sends Dorothy off to see the Wizard.
Dorothy never shows her face — only silhouette and distance shots.
Elphaba confronts Glinda in Munchkinland and they literally slap each other like messy frenemies.

I’m not gonna lie people, i originally thought that maybe the way they can have Elphaba feel hatred towards Dorothy because Dorothys house falls on her sister killing her, then Glinda gives Dorothy Nessarose’s shoes. That would have been a great reason to have the wicked witch have disdain for Dorothy, the era would have lined up perfectly with the wizard of oz.

But instead she just has a cat fight with Glinda, uh huh, sorry what? Again, this is an issue with the broadway. It happens in the broadway as well, i can’t hate on it because it’s accurate but I can point out how stupid this is.

Now its time to talk about the Scarecrow in the room, aka Fiyero.

Scarecrow isn’t a random twist — it originates directly from the musical. After Fiyero is captured and tortured by the Wizard’s guards for helping Elphaba escape, she panics and attempts a desperate spell to save him. Elphaba believes she completely failed… but the spell worked in a way she didn’t expect.

Her magic keeps him alive by turning him into the Scarecrow.

It’s not a curse — it’s literally the only form his body can survive in after the beating he took. The spell stiffens his limbs, removes his pain, and essentially turns him into a man made of straw, able to move only because the enchantment animates him.

That’s why:

He’s “stuffed” with straw

He can’t feel pain

He walks with jerky movements

He survives things a normal human couldn’t

Keep in mind folks. Most of its transformation just happens in off screen. And we just get glimpses of him being beaten up, i decided to look up how it’s like in the broadway. And I actually wanted to describe that instead, because this one sounds a bit more interesting.

On a slight note, when the scarecrow joins Dorothy why doesn’t he warn her that the wizard is a fraud? He knows the wizard is a fraud. He worked for him in the first half of this movie! Sighhhh again this is what I mean by the book author just kind of fumbles, again, movies very accurate to them. Broadway and the book can’t fault it for that while I can fault it for is the laziness of connecting it to the wizard of oz.

Oh, so why doesn’t he tell dorothy?Oh, yeah.I slept and banged the witch!? Or that she’s not evil! Instead just joins her and stays silent, why? I don’t know vibes!?

And it’s why the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz seems so oddly fixated on Elphaba — because he knows her. He remembers everything. He’s still Fiyero, just living inside a new form.

Even in Broadway canon, after Dorothy “melts” Elphaba, the Scarecrow is the one who comes to collect her — revealing that both he and Elphaba survived the whole ordeal.

Then we see the shadow version of Dorothy walking up very calmly — almost unsettlingly calmly — and pouring a bucket of water directly onto Elphaba.
Not an accident like the original film.
Not trying to put out a fire.
Just… straight-up execution.

Glinda sees the silhouette from the closet.
Smoke rises.
Elphaba’s hat falls.
Everyone thinks she’s dead.

Morrible gets arrested.
The Wizard gets banished after learning from Glinda that Elphaba is his daughter — confirmed by the vial he once gave her mother.

And then — the payoff — Fiyero knocks on the trapdoor.
Elphaba emerges, alive.
They escape together.

The lie stands.
The story of the Wicked Witch becomes the myth the world believes.
And Glinda stays behind to clean up Oz.


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If you want anything expanded, harsher, more chaotic, more sarcastic, or more emotional, just say the word — I can revise any section.

Like I said, its a lovable mess like a complete mess, Anwyays I hope y’all enjoy this film as much as I did. But again this film might break it or make it for y’all, let’s see where it lands for y’all.

By the way, if any of y’all say it makes no sense that Elphaba decides to give up on her crusade. Then, decides to fake her own death and just go live a secret life alone with Fiyero, and that it makes no sense. But actually it makes sense because Glinda arrests Madam Morrible and banishes the wizard then brings the animals back into oz, and give them the rights back.

So the fight is literally over. End of discussion.