“Wicked: For Good” failed to cast a spell on Oscar voters. When Academy Award nominations were announced on Thursday, it was revealed that musicals were completely shut out of this year’s race. What makes this omission so surprising is that just a year ago, Wicked received an impressive 10 nominations, including Best Picture.
The film adaptation of the second half of the Broadway sensation not only missed out on awards in the top categories, but also stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, as well as the bottom-line craftsmen who brought Oz to life on screen. So what went wrong with this trip down the Yellow Brick Road? Here are six reasons why Wicked: For Good was snubbed at the Oscars.
1) The second act of musicals has always been a problem.
Perhaps Wicked: For Good’s biggest problem is its source material. As Broadway fans are well aware, the first act of Wicked includes such jarring words as “popular” and “What Is This Feeling?” Before the ending begins with the electric high notes of “Defying Gravity.” When the curtain rises on the second part, things get…difficult. It’s far darker than its fuzzier first act, with too many breathtaking developments and loose parts that make no sense in the context of “The Wizard of Oz.” On Broadway, “Wicked” famously lost the Tony Award for Best Musical to “Avenue Q,” and much of that probably had to do with its lackluster finale.
2) There were no reviews.
“Wicked” was praised by critics, but some criticized the sequel. Check out the headline for The New Yorker’s honest review of the film. “‘Wicked: For Good’ is very, very bad.” Yes, this sequel is still rated “Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes, with 66% of critics recommending the film. However, this is far from the previous work’s 88% “fresh” rating. In the end, the sequel failed to recapture the infectious charm of “Wicked” and ended up being too good to be true.
3) Sequels often don’t win Oscars.
Yes, some of the sequels won Academy Awards. The Godfather and Lord of Rings sequels both won Best Picture, and recent sequels like Mad Max: Fury Road, Top Gun: Maverick and Avatar: The Way of Water were also nominated for the top prize. But there’s generally a feeling that follow-up films are money grabs. (Although For Good isn’t technically a sequel, some critics questioned whether Universal needed to split the film into two parts.) Series films ranging from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever to The Empire Strikes Back to Creed were also not nominated for Best Picture, even though the first films in their respective series were all recognized. But while many of those films were nominated in lower categories, “Wicked: For Good” received the worst treatment. Maybe they felt they had already made musical film a success by giving Wicked 10 nominations.
4) Box office success wasn’t magical.
Although Wicked: For Good was more popular than its predecessor at the start of weekend ticket sales, the second film did not enjoy the same staying power in theaters. Wicked became the highest-grossing Broadway film in history with $758 million, but For Good lost ground with $523 million worldwide. While this is still a strong number for a musical (a genre that tends to struggle in theaters), it’s clear that audiences weren’t all that enthusiastic about Ozian’s finale. Academy voters seemed to be similarly lukewarm.
5) The new songs didn’t stick in my memory.
Unlike the first film, which was not considered for the Best Original Song category (all of the songs were written more than 20 years ago for the Broadway show, of course), the second film nominated two new songs: Erivo’s “No Place Like Home” and Grande’s “The Girl in the Bubble.” Perhaps voters had higher standards because they were comparing these ballads to musical theater classics like “For Good” and “No Good Deed.” But unlike those numbers, no one left the theater humming “No Place Like Home” or remembering the lyrics to “The Girl in the Bubble.”
6) Matters regarding campaigns
Grande and Erivo appeared everywhere in the first film, including a stop at the Paris Summer Olympics, numerous magazine covers, and the much-hyped press junket that cemented the term “holding space” in the cultural lexicon. Universal was concerned that viewers would flock to the sequel and decided to separate the two leads for promotional purposes. Additionally, Erivo missed several major events while preparing for “Dracula” in the West End. But just like Elphaba and Glinda, the witchy best friends at the center of Ozian’s story, Grande and Erivo need each other. And while they were in separate corners of the world, the campaign was not very high.
