I’m Convinced Wicked Fans Will Be Debating For Good’s Big Change Forever

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Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel, Wicked, retells The Wizard of Oz from the perspective of the Wicked Witch of the West, examining the nature of evil. The story gained widespread popularity with the long-running Broadway show, and the 2024 film, directed by Jon M. Chu, focused on the beginnings of Elphaba, played by Cynthia Erivo. However, the recently released follow-up film, Wicked: For Good, appears to take the story in a new direction, according to both fans and critics.

If you’ve seen the second Wicked movie, you might have noticed Ariana Grande with a bigger role and Cynthia Erivo with a smaller one. That’s because the sequel focuses more on Glinda’s story than Elphaba’s. While both films work together to tell the complete story, this one shifts the focus, giving Grande’s character, Glinda, the main storyline and placing Elphaba in a supporting position. Whether this change was a good idea is something fans will likely be discussing for a while.

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Wicked: For Good.

Ariana Grande’s Glinda Takes the Lead in Wicked: For Good

The second movie focuses on Glinda and how she slowly understands she’s been overlooking terrible events while living a sheltered life in Oz. While Elphaba has some internal struggles, most of her character development happened in the first film. To create a compelling story, this new movie, Wicked: For Good, centers on Glinda’s journey. She’s ultimately forced to face the truth about her own self-image and how her decisions have affected both her friendship with Elphaba and the people of Oz, leading to a major turning point when she chooses a side.

At its heart, the story of Wicked has always been about the friendship between its two main characters. The popular song, For Good, directly illustrates how their lives changed each other. The decision to split the story into two movies required restructuring the narrative, which upset some fans. In the book and stage versions, Glinda is presented as a somewhat tragic figure, seemingly popular but trapped by her own image, while Elphaba ultimately succeeds by being true to herself and finding happiness. However, the movie version portrays Glinda as a more selfless character who overcomes her flaws and sacrifices her status for Elphaba.

The idea of telling the story through two films, each focusing on a different main character with their own storyline, is clever – and it’s clearly working well with audiences. However, those who’ve always considered Wicked to be primarily about Elphaba might feel her story gets a little lost in this two-part approach.

Do you think the movies portrayed Glinda’s story accurately? Share your thoughts in the comments and join the discussion on the ComicBook Forum!

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2025-11-29 23:40