LAS VEGAS – Sorry “Wicked” fans, you’re going to have to wait a while for an official preview of Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked For Good.” The second part of the Universal Pictures’ musical blockbuster arrives at Thanksgiving, but, per tradition, the first look was saved for the world’s theater owners at CinemaCon. And the studio once again had Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Chu, and producer Marc Platt on hand to say “thank you” as well as hype the final film.
READ MORE: “F1,” “Weapons,” and Leonardo DiCaprio give Warner Bros some life [CinemaCon]
The footage began with Glinda (Grande) walking onto her Emerald City penthouse, only to turn to see Elphaba (Erivo) in shadow, waiting for her. For those who care, Elphaba has a more liberated look for the second chapter. Her hair is down and she’s not wearing the constricting gown we saw her in at the end of “Wicked.” She’s also living in “exile,” as Erivio described it, in a woodland-inspired enclave honing her magic skills. Glinda is the face of the Wizard, who is preparing for battle (or war?), seemingly pulling an army or battalion together. There was a shot of Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh), a close up on some gold bricks of the yellow brick road, and Dorothy and her crew are very much in the movie (although only seen from behind). Prince Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) was a big part of the piece and, at one point, he appears to turn against the Wizard. Where that occurs in this adaptation of the musical remains to be seen. The entire piece was set to a very contemporary version of Grande singing “For Good.”
Moreover, this part of the “Wicked” story was also significantly more action-packed than our initial big screen introduction to Oz. There was a ton of Elphaba flying, fights, and bravado from Fiyero. Familiar faces such as Boq (Ethan Slater), Pfannee (Bowen Yang), and Nessarose (Marissa Bode) were nowhere to be seen (although that may be intentional). Additionally, there was no hint of the two new original songs that were meant to be included in “For Good.” Nevertheless, the footage shown at CinemaCon should make fans – hardcore and casual alike – quite happy.
The other big title for Universal will arrive much earlier, Gareth Edwards’ “Jurassic World Rebirth.” That July 2nd tentpole stars Mahershala Ali, Scarlett Johannson, and Jonathan Bailey. The latter couldn’t make it to Vegas because of a commitment to portray “Richard III” in the West End, but the other stars joined Edwards to bust on each other and introduce a new trailer for the long-running franchise.
Edwards was quite funny, noting he only got offered the gig because Steven Spielberg wasn’t available and pointing out that while Ali was an Oscar winner, oh, right, Johannson is not (yet). Ali delighted the crowd by making the point that he is actually a two-time Academy Award recipient. Edwards also joked that while Johansson had told Universal she wanted to star in the franchise for 15 years, she was also too expensive (even for a cameo). It looks like there was room in the budget this time around.
A finished second trailer was shown to the CinemaCon attendees, and it mostly included longer scenes from the original preview. What was new was a new monster, dinosau,r or hybrid (?) that looks like a gigantic creature out of an “Alien” movie. Also, a young girl connected to Ali’s character has a cute, baby dino hidden in her backpack. Johansson and Ali said it was a very physical and non-green screen shoot in Thailan,d and the extended footage proved their point.
Here’s some quick reactions to more of Universal’s busy presentation.
*”M3GAN 2.0″
Blumhouse and the filmmakers have figured out their audience. They are leaning into the camp aspect of this franchise like it’s an “Austin Powers” flick and we’re not mad at it. The sequel finds the programming of M3GAN caged in a tiny kids robot so that Gemma (Allison Williams) can make sure our anti-heroine doesn’t hurt anyone (no, we don’t get why she wouldn’t just delete her). It turns out Gemma’s plans for M3GAN were stolen and a new, more evil version, Emilia, is wreaking havoc. Against her better judgment, Gemma frees M3GAN and upgrades her so she can take on her doppleganger. At one point the taller, faster, and stronger M3GAN says “hold on to your vaginas.” I mean, we’re there.
*”Black Phone 2.0″
The Grabber is back. He’s ice skating and he’s haunting Finny (Mason Thames) and Gwen (Madeline McGraw, who was on hand to introduce). Looks perfect for a prime horror release date in October.
*”Five Nights at Freddy’s 2″
A new trailer is already online. Enjoy.
*”Nobody 2″
Sharon Stone‘s comeback begins here! Probably not, but get that coin. The audience loved seeing Bob Odenkirk kick ass again.
*”HIM”
Directed by Justin Tipping and produced by Jordan Peele, this teaser was a bit A24, a bit NEON, a bit Blumhouse, and a bit slick NFL promo. Seemingly a horror movie, Damon Wayans plays a fading football player training with an up-and-comer portrayed by Tyriq Withers. The occult may be involved…
*”Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie”
Whatever they paid Kristen Wiig to be in this kid’s flick, I hope it got her real estate somewhere and she got to keep the wardrobe.
Follow Gregory Ellwood on BlueSky
Follow Gregory Ellwood on Threads
Editor-at-Large Gregory Ellwood is one of the entertainment industry's most respected journalists and critics. Based in Los Angeles, he's the only current awards expert who previously worked on Oscar campaigns at a major movie studio. Over the years, he has written for the LA Times, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and Vox, among others. He also co-founded the entertainment news site HitFix, which spawned a legion of influential Emmy and WGA Award-winning alumni.
