Wicked continues to fly high, racking up four 2025 Golden Globe nominations.
The Jon M. Chu-directed box office hit was nominated for best picture, musical or comedy. Unsurprisingly, the film’s stars Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba, and Ariana Grande, who plays Galinda/Glinda, both scored acting nominations in the best performance by a female actor in a musical or comedy and best performance by a female actor in a supporting role in any motion picture, respectively.
Wicked also earned a cinematic and box office achievement nomination in the category’s second year. Barbie, which was the top-grossing film of 2023, won the inaugural award last year. The Universal film, which arrived in theaters Nov. 22, 2024, had the highest opening for a musical adaptation with an estimated $114 million at the domestic box office. (Grande and Erivo, despite an unverified online rumor, were paid equal for their show-stopping starring roles.)
Despite the strong showing in acting categories, Chu and the film’s writers were shut out from the directing and writing categories. Wicked, whose soundtrack managed to debut No. 2 on the Billboard 200 last week, was not eligible for any music categories given the film used only songs from the original musical. Chu recently said part two will feature two new songs. The director said he couldn’t disclose anything about the songs just yet, but noted that they were “fantastic.”
Wicked tells the untold story of the witches of Oz. The film and the forthcoming Wicked: Part Two set to hit theaters in Nov. 2025 are based on the 2003 musical of the same name, which was originally based on the best-selling novel by Gregory Maguire. Winnie Holzman, the stage production’s book writer, wrote the screenplay for Chu’s movie with Dana Fox. Academy Award-winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz returned to the show to adapt the musical for the screen. Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth originated the roles of Elphaba and Glinda on Broadway, and made cameos in the film.
Golden Globes producer Dick Clark Productions is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and Eldridge that also owns The Hollywood Reporter.
