All posts tagged: Wicked

Minions & Monsters Nabs John Powell as Composer

Minions & Monsters Nabs John Powell as Composer

Published by Daniella Wilson

John Powell, the two-time Academy Award nominee for his work on How to Train Your Dragon and Wicked, is set to score Illumination’s Minions & Monsters.  The move reunites the music meister with Illumination, for whom he composed the score to 2023’s Migration and 2012’s The Lorax. Coming out of the Despicable Me movies, which is the biggest global animated franchise in history, Minions & Monsters in the third spin-off that focuses on the  excitable small, yellow little creatures that seem to only exist to serve an evil master. This one is being billed as “rambunctious, ridiculous and totally true story” of how the Minions conquered Hollywood, became movie stars, lost everything, unleashed monsters onto the world and then banded together to try and save the planet from the mayhem they had just created. It is also being described as a love letter to classic Hollywood, which will allow Powell to let loose a variety of styles. But he better get a move on as the movie opens July 1. Minions & Monsters is directed by Academy …

Amanda Seyfried on feelings about losing Wicked role to Ariana Grande

Amanda Seyfried on feelings about losing Wicked role to Ariana Grande

Published by Daniella Wilson

Amanda Seyfried has opened up about how she feels about losing out on the role of Glinda in Wicked after numerous auditions. The actress previously revealed that she tried out six times for the role in the film adaptation of the hit broadway show, which would have seen her appear alongside Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, before it ultimately went to pop icon Ariana Grande. In a new interview with Radio Times ahead of the UK release of Seyfried’s new film The Testament of Ann Lee, the actress was asked whether she’s over losing out on the role now, to which she responded: “Yeah. I’ve been making the [promo] rounds with all of them, and it’s like everything happens for a reason.” She continued: “I wasn’t sad I didn’t get it, but I guess I wish it had been communicated to me in a better way. I don’t like to be in the dark about things. I like to feel appreciated.” Seyfried might have missed out on the role of Glinda, but the Mamma Mia! and …

Wicked Third Film Speculation Addressed By Studio Boss

Wicked Third Film Speculation Addressed By Studio Boss

Published by Sam Flores

Wicked: For Good might not be the last audiences see of Oz. Since the musical sequel’s release last year, there have been talks of another skip down the yellow brick road, with those behind the scenes aiming to expand the universe with more world-building films. Donna Langley – the chair of NBCUniversal Entertainment, the production company behind the musical films – has hinted that after the critical and box office success of the first two Wicked films, there may be more left to explore of the world. “It’s very early days on Wicked but we are hopeful that after the amazing success that we’ve seen with the two movies, there are other ways that we could branch out with the world-building,” she told Variety. Langley added that she and her fellow executives at Universal are discussing future franchise plans with their “rights holders and in conjunction with them”, to ensure they only include the characters and stories they already own the rights to within the world of Oz. When Wicked was released in 2024, it …

Wicked Onyx by Debbie Cassidy

Wicked Onyx by Debbie Cassidy

Published by José Betancourt

The weight of ancestral sins can crush even the strongest shoulders, but what happens when those sins might be fabricated lies? Wicked Onyx by Debbie Cassidy plunges readers into a world where magical bloodlines, forbidden romance, and the desperate hunt for truth collide within the deadly walls of an academy that doesn’t educate—it tests survival. A Bloodline Stained by Betrayal Anamaya Onyx carries a name that makes her a pariah in the magical community. For over a century, her family has borne the punishment for Dharma Onyx’s crime—the complete annihilation of an incantor bloodline. The Arcanum Imperium didn’t just strip the Onyx women of their sorcerer powers; they cursed each generation differently. Anamaya’s particular torment? She can feel neither physical pain nor pleasure, a cruel irony that makes intimacy hollow and danger invisible. When her mother dies, leaving behind a cryptic journal and a legal loophole, Anamaya discovers a devastating possibility: her ancestor might have been innocent, framed by the very institution that destroyed her family. Armed with nothing but determination and the Timor Exstinctionis …

‘Wicked: For Good’ Is Coming to Streaming. Here’s What You Can Watch

‘Wicked: For Good’ Is Coming to Streaming. Here’s What You Can Watch

Published by skeptic

Wicked: For Good is the second half of Universal Pictures’s epic tale about the witches of Oz and how their relationship has soured since the events of the first movie. The sequel, which debuted at the top of the global box office, is the biggest opening ever for a Broadway musical adaptation.  Get ready to relive the magic as Wicked: For Good is coming to streaming. The movie picks up with Glinda (Ariana Grande) as the leader of Emerald City. Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), now known as The Wicked Witch of the West, has been ostracized and forced into exile. Thanks to the arrival of a mysterious girl from Kansas, the two must face their past in order to save their present. The movie was directed by Jon M. Chu and also stars Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Michelle Yeoh and Jeff Goldblum. Wicked: For Good bonus features include director commentary, behind-the-scenes featurettes and a full-length sing-along version of the movie. Read on to find out when Wicked: For Good will hit streaming, along …

Oscar Nominations Snubs and Surprises 2026: ‘Wicked’ Shut Out for Good

Oscar Nominations Snubs and Surprises 2026: ‘Wicked’ Shut Out for Good

Published by Sam Flores

Because this Oscar season has been competitive from the get-go, we were expecting some surprises when nominations were announced—and boy, did we get them. The Oscar nominations 2026 included a slew of pleasantly unpredictable names in the acting categories (Delroy Lindo! Elle Fanning!) as well as several shake-ups in other tight races, like best director and even best picture. Sure, One Battle After Another and Sinners were expected to lead the pack when the final list was announced Thursday, just as they have all season. But Sinners made history by breaking the record for the most nominations ever received by a single movie, outstripping its top competitor (which only—“only”—got 13 total nods). There were some painful snubs as well. Though the first Wicked film got lavished with Oscar attention last year, earning 10 nominations, including for best picture, and winning two awards (for its production and costume design), Wicked: For Good was completely shut out at this year’s ceremony. Palme d’Or winner It Was Just an Accident also seemed like a strong Oscar contender, but …

Oscar Nominations 2026: 7 Biggest Snubs And Surprises This Year

Oscar Nominations 2026: 7 Biggest Snubs And Surprises This Year

Published by Sam Flores

The nominees for the upcoming Oscars have been announced – and the cast and crew of Sinners have plenty to celebrate this year, leading the way with a record-breaking 16 nominations. As ever, the shortlist of nominees immediately generated a lot of conversation when it was unveiled on Thursday afternoon, both from movie fans sharing their top picks to take home that coveted golden trophy in March, and those who didn’t make the cut this year. Indeed, there are some pretty note-worthy absentees from this year’s Oscar nominations, while there are a fair few others we were pleasantly surprised to see make their way into their categories. Here are our seven biggest snubs and surprises of the 2026 Oscar nominees… SNUB Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande as Elphaba and Glinda in Wicked: For Good Let’s start with the biggie, shall we? In 2025, the first Wicked movie racked up a hefty 10 Oscar nominations, including acting wins for both Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, and wins in the Best Production Design and Best Costume Design …

Ariana Grande responds to Cynthia Erivo’s Wicked: For Good awards snub

Ariana Grande responds to Cynthia Erivo’s Wicked: For Good awards snub

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Ariana Grande has responded to her Wicked: For Good co-star Cynthia Erivo’s snubbing by the Actor Awards (formerly known as the SAG Awards). Erivo, 39, who led the hit musical sequel as the green-skinned witch Elphaba, had been nominated for the award last year for her turn in the first Wicked, but was absent from this year’s list of nominees. The film’s director, John M Chu, was also absent from the nominees at the Directors Guild of America Awards. Grande, who was nominated this year for her supporting turn as Glinda, was asked about the omissions in a new interview with Variety. “There aren’t enough flowers on this earth for Jon M. Chu,” she said. “He’s an extraordinary human being and director, This film will be watched for decades to come. He set out to move people, to challenge them, to …

Grenell says ‘Wicked’ composer’s Kennedy Center cancellation ‘totally bogus’

Grenell says ‘Wicked’ composer’s Kennedy Center cancellation ‘totally bogus’

Published by Sam Flores

Kennedy Center interim President Richard Grenell dismissed reports Friday that “Wicked” composer Stephen Schwartz canceled his upcoming performances at the venue, saying he had never signed a deal to perform under the new leadership. “The Stephen Schwartz reports are totally bogus,” Grenell wrote on the social platform X. “Shame on the woke high school reporters… Source link

Wicked composer says he’d never ‘set foot’ in Trump-Kennedy Center as he cancels performance over rebrand

Wicked composer says he’d never ‘set foot’ in Trump-Kennedy Center as he cancels performance over rebrand

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz has pulled out of a scheduled performance at the Kennedy Center over President Donald Trump’s renaming of the historic venue. Three-time Oscar winner Schwartz, 77, has joined a growing list of artists to boycott the cultural center over Trump’s potentially illegal attempt to rebrand the institution as the Trump-Kennedy Center. Schwartz, who was scheduled to host the Washington National Opera Gala at the Kennedy Center on May 16, told Newsday there was “no way” he would enter the venue now. “It no longer represents the apolitical place for free artistic expression it was founded to be,” Schwartz said in an email sent by his assistant. “There’s no way I would set foot in it now.” Schwartz’s other stage works include Godspell, Pippin and Children of Eden. He has also contributed songs to major animated films, including Pocahontas and The …