Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande have received huge plaudits for their performances in Wicked – with both having already been heavily tipped for nods during next year’s awards season.
But bringing two of musical theatre’s most iconic characters to the big screen was no mean task, and the audition process to find the perfect Elphaba and Glinda went on a lot longer than many of us might realise.
During this time, we can only imagine how many would-be Oz-ians went in for auditions – but what we do know is that there were some pretty big names in consideration before Cynthia and Ariana were cast.
Here are just a handful of the stars who were in consideration for the Wicked movie at one point or another…
Amanda Seyfried
Back in 2022, Amanda Seyfried revealed that she auditioned to play Glinda while still filming her acclaimed role in the TV drama The Dropout.
“I wanted it that much that I was like, ‘You know what? Yeah, I have to play the last scene of The Dropout on Tuesday. I’ll give my Sunday to you’. I literally bent over backwards while playing the hardest role of my life,” she claimed, joking that Wicked still haunts her dreams.
Amanda is no stranger to big-screen musicals, appearing in pivotal roles in both Mamma Mia! and Les Misérables, and admitted to Backstage that she was keen to show how much her voice has improved in the decade since she played Cosette.
Renée Rapp
Speaking of Mean Girls, Amanda Seyfried isn’t the only member of the “Plastics” to audition for the role of Glinda.
During a 2022 appearance on Watch What Happens Live, Renée Rapp was asked by a fan if it was true she’d been in consideration for the part of Glinda.
Although Renée confirmed she did have an audition, she made it clear there were no hard feelings when she showed her support for Ariana, who she said was going to be “fucking amazing” in the role.
Earlier this year, Renée appeared in another of the year’s most talked-about movie musicals when she played Regina George in Mean Girls, a role she already played on the Broadway stage.
Dove Cameron
Dove Cameron confirmed to TheWrap in 2023 that she went out for the part of Glinda.
“I know that for everybody who did go out for it, it was a very long process,” she said. “It was one of the longer processes I’ve been a part of.”
The singer and actor has actually worked with the OG Glinda Kristin Chenoweth on numerous occasions, playing her on-screen daughter in Disney’s Descendants and a live TV version of Hairspray (which also happened to star Ariana Grande).
Dove and Kristin then worked together a third time in the musical sitcom Schmigadoon!.
Nick and Joe Jonas
Yes, at one point there were not one but two Jonas Brothers in the running for the role of Fiyero.
During an interview with Variety last year, Nick Jonas let slip that both he and Joe auditioned for Wicked, sharing: “I think it went really well. I was very happy coming out of the room. I’m a huge fan of the show, and that’s a role I always thought it would be fun to play.”
“We always say we want someone with the last name Jonas to win. That’s our goal,” Nick previously told the Armchair Expert podcast of their unsuccessful auditions.
Taylor Louderman
Another Glinda hopeful with a Mean Girls connection, Taylor Louderman originated the role of Regina George on Broadway, earning her a Tony nomination.
When Ariana was confirmed to have landed the part in 2021, Taylor made no secret of her disappointment, writing on Instagram: ”[Why] did I even audition or think I had a chance?!”
“This business,” she lamented. “You can’t care too much about any role you’re auditioning for (or you could get hurt and won’t come back) but you have to care enough to give it your all. I cared too much this time.”
Since her Wicked audition, Taylor landed a main part in the US sitcom Kenan and appeared in a revival of the musical Chess, where she performed the show’s signature tune I Know Him So Well.
Ryan McCartan
Like Taylor, Ryan is another Broadway performer who set his sights on the Wicked movie, having previously played Fiyero in the stage musical for around a year.
Despite working “so hard” on his audition, Ryan insisted he had “no hard feelings” about losing out on the part to Jonathan Bailey.
He’s been booked and busy ever since, including playing Prince Hans in the stage version of Disney’s Frozen and an upcoming lead performance in the new Broadway musical The Great Gatsby.
Coincidentally, he once dated fellow Wicked hopeful Dove Cameron, with whom he used to star in the Disney series Liv & Maddie.
Stephanie Hsu
This one didn’t actually turn into an audition, as Stephanie Hsu has said she actually declined the invitation to try out for the role of Glinda when it was offered to her.
“I was asked to audition but I don’t feel in my heart to be a Glinda,” the Everything Everywhere All At Once star told Watch What Happens Live following Wicked’s release.
Had things turned out differently, Wicked could have been a reunion for Stephanie and her one-time on-screen mum Michelle Yeoh, who plays the sorceress Madame Morrible in the screen musical.
Nicole Scherzinger
When rumblings of a Wicked film first began, The Sun claimed that Nicole Scherzinger had begun “talks” to play the lead role Elphaba.
Although Nicole quickly insisted there was no truth to the rumours, she did make it known that she’d be “stoked” to play the role “if somebody wants to holler at a sister”.
The former Pussycat Dolls star recently won an Olivier for her leading performance in a West End reimagining of the musical Sunset Boulevard, and is currently playing Norma Desmond in the same show on Broadway.
Lady Gaga
While it’s not been confirmed by the woman herself, Page Six claimed in November 2023 that Lady Gaga was among the original top picks to play Elphaba.
According to the US outlet, Gaga was a favourite of filmmaker Stephen Daldry when he was still attached to direct the film, and the pair even reportedly held meetings about how best to approach the character.
However, when Stephen departed the project, it would seem that so, too, did Gaga’s chances of singing Defying Gravity on the big screen, despite her almost being “essentially cast in his version”.
The Oscar winner did make a move into screen musicals this year, though, appearing opposite Joaquin Phoenix in the much-maligned Joker sequel Folie À Deux.
Shawn Mendes
In that same Page Six report it was claimed that Shawn Mendes had been “rumoured to star as Fiyero” in the big-screen version of Wicked.
While Gaga had already won a Golden Globe for her work in American Horror Story when she was reportedly being considered for Elphaba, Shawn’s acting credentials are a little less established.
However, he has previously voiced a character in the animated family movie Metegol and the title character Lyle, Lyle Crocodile, as well as one episode of the dystopian drama The 100.
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