‘Wicked’ live musical special coming to NBC with Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

(CNN) — “Wicked” the film was so popular that a special is coming to the small screen.

The movie’s director Jon M. Chu reportedly made the announcement Monday during NBCUniversal’s upfront presentation, held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

Calling the special “something that’s never been done in the 22-year history of ‘Wicked,’” Chu said, according to Variety, that it would feature stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande performing live songs from the first movie “and maybe a little bit from the second one as well.”

Other “Wicked” cast members and “surprise guests” are also expected to take part in the “night of entertainment that we think will be, as they say in Oz, thrillifying,” Chu said, per the publication.

“Wicked,” released last year, featured Erivo as Elphaba and Grande as Glinda.

A poster for the special shared by the social media accounts for the movie states that the special is scheduled to air on NBC and stream on Peacock this fall.

The “Wicked” film was a huge box office success and earned Erivo and Grande nominations for Academy Awards.

During the upfront presentation on Monday, Chu also shared with those in attendance a sneak peek of the unreleased trailer for the sequel titled “Wicked: For Good,” which is scheduled to be released in November 2025.

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