Wicked has already left its mark on cinematic history, with its impressive box office numbers making it one of the highest-grossing non-sequels of all time. It is now successful that it dethroned Star Wars in that top ten list. It has won 61 awards and garnered 268 award nominations and we are all looking forward to seeing how many Academy Awards it will bring in out of its ten nominations. That doesn't mean we're in for an audience sing-along, though.
What was Wicked's rumored role in the 2025 Oscars?
The Academy Awards, which are to take place on March 2, 2025, always feature music from the previous year's cinematic efforts as Best Original Song is a category of its own. Wicked's original Elphaba, Idina Menzel, even performed the Oscar-winning "Let it Go" in 2014.
Variety reports that "As reported by Puck, the Academy is looking to open the telecast with a medley of "Wicked" songs performed by Erivo and her co-star Ariana Grande." This calls to mind the 2013 awards where the cast of Les Miserables performed at that year's ceremony and there's no doubt that such a medley would build excitement and energy for the biggest night in Hollywood. Responding to the rumor, Cynthia Erivo has flatly denied it. "Why does everyone keep saying that?" she asked Marc Malkin. "Why on Earth would we be singing?...I don't know why we would be doing that, since our song is not nominated."
That point is even more relevant with the announcement from the Academy that "none of the nominees for best original song are going to be performed this year, breaking from a tradition for the ceremony...[and] spotlighting 'personal reflections from the songwriters."
We can look forward to the possibility for a Best Original Song nomination in next year's line-up. In late December 2024, Erivo did reveal that she co-wrote a song for the blockbuster's second installment. "I love the song and I remember when we filmed it, the cast and crew were crying...and I don't know if that's just because they were emotional that day or that's what the song does." Wicked has no songs that are exclusive to the movie, though "One Short Day" includes new material performed by the originators of the lead roles.
Wicked: For Good is slated to release on November 21, 2025, but we hope to see the witches of Oz on stage at the Oscars to accept well-deserved trophies in the coming month.