Jon M. Chu’s two-movie adaptation of the musical Wicked has (hopefully!) found its wizard in the form of Jeff Goldblum.
According to Variety, the Jurassic Park and Thor: Ragnarok star (pictured above in the Marvel film) is in final talks to play the Wizard in the films. If those talks end with Goldblum officially coming on board, he’ll be joining Cynthia Ervio (The Sandman), who will be playing Elphaba the future Wicked Witch of the West, and pop-star Ariana Grande, who will be playing Glinda the Good Witch. Bridgerton actor Jonathan Bailey is also on board to play Fiyero, an Arjiki prince who is Elphaba’s love interest during her college years.
Goldblum as the Wizard is delectable casting, and the actor will no doubt bring some of his Goldblum-ness to the part. In the musical, the Wizard is an antagonist of the story and is very full of himself, to put it mildly. Seeing him act against Erivo and Grande would be a joy to behold, so let’s hope those talks get finalized soon and Goldblum gets ready to play an amoral god-like being once again.
The only sad news about this casting is that we’re still over two years away from seeing the first film, as the two Wicked movies are set to premiere on Christmas in 2024 and 2025 respectively.
