Wicked gays, theater gays, witchy theater gays, gather around, we finally have one full length rogue trailer Obsessing over the next 200 days until the first part on-screen Wicked The adaptation is hitting theaters. (Whenever I remember this is a two-part movie, I want to scream????? But, alas.) Gay Wicked Trailer idea, let’s go.
“Are people born wicked or is wickedness thrust upon them?” Ariana Grande’s Glinda provides music in a voiceover at the beginning of the trailer. I’ve watched the trailer half a dozen times already, and every time, I’m amazed at how much Ari has changed for this role… all about himself???? And, of course, Cynthia Erivo’s entrance as Elphaba is appropriately dramatic. Crackling heels! Grab your hair! Infinity glasses! And right from the start of the Glinda/Elphaba meet-cute, it’s clear that Erivo and Grande have chemistry, which is really the most important thing to making a screen adaptation of this musical work. I don’t care how good or realistic the special effects, the magic, the flying look are – what gives me is great, great chemistry between the leads! And all three minutes and 33 seconds of this trailer, thankfully, is exactly what we’re delivering. (For what it’s worth, the effects don’t look bad – or Very Over-the-top, which is what I was worried about – either.)
We see Glinda and Elphaba and Jonathan Bailey’s Fiyero begin their journey at Shiz University, where Elphaba and Glinda live together as roommates despite having very little in common. And, well, gay fans of the musical will tell you that this roommate scenario is loaded with gay subtext and tension. or at least, it Any lesbian music fan will tell you, she probably screamed drunkenly in a bar in Chicago in 2015 when she was newly out!!!!! Oh and Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Shiz’s headmistress? Wonderful.
We get an early taste of Glinda’s song “Popular”, and Ari’s voice is really made for the role. I’m always worried about movie music trailers, because I want more music in them, but also don’t want some big singing moment to be spoiled prematurely. I know that some of the song moments in the film will shake me, maybe even bring tears to my eyes, because Wicked Music has been an important part of my young gay life. To my surprise, we got samples of the two most famous – and in my experience most karaoked – tracks: “Popular” and “Defying Gravity.” But it also makes sense: These are probably songs that even casual viewers who aren’t as familiar with the original musical will know, making them a universally appealing teaser in the trailer.
still! Bowen Yang is here!
I need Warby Parker to launch Wicked Eyewear line, stat.
As Elphaba’s powers grow, so do the tensions between her and Glinda. Glinda lends Elphaba her grandmother’s dusty old witch hat, and when Elphaba wears it at a school function, everyone laughs and makes fun of her. Wearing a weird hat to an event and then everyone making fun of you? Even if we leave the roommate bullying aside, this is the perfect gay experience!!! And then Elphaba makes it even more bizarre by deciding to embrace the very thing she was ridiculed for, wearing the hat for the remainder of the trailer. Making an accessory your personality? that’s a weird culture And Clothes.
The trailer hits the big emotional beats of Elphaba and Glinda’s enemy-to-friend-to-enemy arc, and again, the chemistry between Erivo and Grande is gravity-defying. I can’t wait to see them sing together, especially on one of my personal favorite songs, which really drives home some of the show’s quirky subtexts: “What’s this feeling?”
Jeff Golblum’s The Magician also appears in the trailer, highlighting the central conflict of the story, in which Elphaba is demonized and essentially made an enemy of the state in the name of propaganda and social control. I can’t tell from the trailer yet, but I hope some of the socio-political underpinnings of the story are well executed in the film!
But this long-awaited trailer creates additional excitement for the film, even if I find it absolutely inexcusable that it’s just a part. Ari and Cynthia are stars individually and together!
Now, it’s time to turn to the original Broadway cast recording.
