Jon M. Chu dishes on Idina Menzel, Kristin Chenoweth’s ‘Wicked’ cameo

Jon M. Chu, the director of Wicked movie, has revealed exciting details about the cameo appearances of Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth in the movie.

While having a conversation with CinemaBlend, Chu talked about how he planned for original Broadway stars’ Menzel and Chenoweth to appear in the song One Short Day in Wicked.

They joined Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, their replacements in the movie, for the performance.

Chu said, “It was a tightrope that we all had to talk about a lot, with Stephen [Schwartz] and Winnie [Holzman] as well, where’s the best place. And we had them as cameo roles at some point, like, ‘maybe they’re Galinda’s parents’ or ‘maybe they’re this or that.’ And those were all fine and good, but every time we thought of it more, it didn’t feel — they’re at the top of their game right now.”

He added, “They’re at the top of their game right now. They’re not like some people who don’t do it there. [If] they are there, you want them to do their thing, and I always felt like as a fan myself, if I see them in this movie, I’m going to want them to do their thing.”

The 45-year-old director went on to reveal that he imagined a “Wizomania” ride for when Menzel and Chenoweth arrive in Oz.

He highlighted that Disney ride, It’s a Small World, inspired him, “where you get into a boat and it takes you through the history of Oz.”

Chu continued, “And it was going to be a performance that happens around them and all this stuff and then sends you back to the Wizard’s palace.”

“So, we had that, because we needed to set up what the show didn’t have too much about, that we had to do, which was set up the Grimmerie, why the Wizard was here, what the prophecy is — we had a lot of information to give.”

“And it was during those conversations that Stephen and I were talking, and I suggested, ‘We have this section anyway, that’s sort of outside of the narrative that we need to give. Maybe that’s where you do it, so you can add a little sugar to the information.’ And he was like, ‘Give me one night.’ And he rewrote the whole thing as a performance for these girls. It was so fun, that’s where it felt like this is a great moment of sort of a send-off,” the director of Step Up 3D concluded.

It is noteworthy to mention that Menzel and Chenoweth first played the roles of Elphaba and Galinda when Wicked opened on Broadway in 2003.

Notably, Menzel stood victorious by securing a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical, while Chenoweth was also nominated.