Why The Cast Of Wicked Looks So Familiar

"Wicked' is officially a pop culture phenomenon. In fact, if 2023 was the year of "Barbie," it's safe to say that 2024 was the year the "Wicked" movie dominated the cinematic landscape. Based on the 2003 Broadway musical, in turn based on Gregory Maguire's book, "Wicked" tells the story of the witches of Oz before the events of "The Wizard of Oz." The musical follows Glinda (who later becomes Glinda the Good Witch) and Elphaba (who later becomes the Wicked Witch of the West) as they meet and become unlikely friends at school.

The film is set to be one of the biggest movies of the year thanks in no small part to its epic cast. Tony Award winner and Oscar nominee Cynthia Erivo plays Elphaba, while pop superstar Ariana Grande fulfills her childhood dream of playing Glinda. Meanwhile, "Bridgerton" actor Jonathan Bailey looks as dashing as ever as Fiyero, the two witches' love interest (yes, it gets a little messy). The film also stars other familiar faces such as Michelle Yeoh from "Everything Everywhere All At Once" and Jeff Goldblum. Curious where you know the rest of the cast from? We've got you covered.

We probably don't need to explain to you why Glinda's Ariana Grande looks familiar. She is, of course, a superstar. But while Grande may be best-known as a Grammy Award-winning, record-breaking star, before she entered the pop world, she was actually daydreaming about musical theater. 

Grande grew up doing theater at local companies, and at the age of 14, she made her Broadway debut in "13." After that, she landed a role in Nickelodeon's "Victorious," and from there, she began building her pop career. She never really looked back — that is, until "Wicked" came along and changed everything.

Since filming "Wicked," Grande has said she's "reconnecting" with her inner theater kid. In fact, she actually plans on doing more of it in the future. "I'm always going to do pop stuff, I pinky promise," she said during the "Las Culturistas" podcast. "But I don't think doing it at the rate I've been doing it for the past 10 years. [That] is where I see the next 10 years." In the future, she hopes to take on other roles that "fit."

Cynthia Erivo stars as Elphaba, aka the Wicked Witch. Her casting just makes sense. The British actor studied at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art where she discovered her talent for musicals. "Some people were really wonderful at the classics and at Jacobeans," she told NPR's "Fresh Air" podcast. "And, you know, those kids that came from Eton who had read those things were brilliant at those things. But I wasn't that. My raw talent came from understanding music." 

Erivo went on to book several iconic musical roles. In 2015, she played Celie in "The Color Purple" on Broadway, and the role earned her a Tony Award. She has also appeared in "Sister Act" and "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" on stage, and sung at numerous awards shows and benefits. Erivo has also proven herself in the screen acting department, with acclaimed roles in "Harriet," "The Outsider," and more. As Elphaba, Erivo's star is sure to rise to new heights — we'll certainly be seeing much more of her as both an actor and a singer in years to come.

Jonathan Bailey stars in "Wicked" as Fiyero, the laid-back, dashing Winkie prince who becomes a love interest for both Glinda and Elphaba. Chances are, you've seen him on your screens before. Bailey first appeared on our radars in 2020 when he appeared as Anthony Bridgerton in Netflix's popular "Bridgerton" series. He really shot to fame, however, in 2022, when his character became one half of the show's central couple. Of course, some may recognize him from earlier projects. The actor made his debut way back in 1997 as a child actor in an episode of "Bramwell," before landing roles in 2004's "Five Children and It," 2007's "Elizabeth: The Golden Age," 2007's "St. Trinian's," 2014's "Testament of Youth," and 2018's "The Mercy" to name just a few. Plus, he's appeared in a number of theatrical productions, too, including "Othello" and "Company."

But before all of this acting, Bailey actually began performing thanks to his passion for dance — and funnily enough, his role in "Wicked" sees him coming full circle. "It was dancing that got me into acting," Bailey told Vanity Fair. "And in dance school — not school, but a hobby club — they had acrobatics, which I was obsessed with. So I had, and still do have, a very bend back, as shown in 'Wicked.'"

Marissa Bode stars as Nessarose, Elphaba's younger sister who, spoiler, becomes the Wicked Witch of the East, aka, the one killed by Dorothy's house in "The Wizard of Oz." Bode is the first wheelchair user to play the character.

Bode grew up in a small town in Wisconsin and fell in love with theater at a young age. "I started doing local community theater when I was 8," she told Broadway World. "The first role that I ever got was a little orphan in 'Prince and the Pauper.' I had two lines because I was scared going into it." Bode went on to appear in other musicals like "Little Shop of Horrors" and "Mary Poppins." During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bode studied (partially online) at The American Musical and Dramatic Academy.

After a series of auditions, Bode landed the role with Jon M. Chu, Ariana Grande, and Cynthia Erivo giving her the news over Zoom. Ultimately, Bode hopes her casting helps other people with disabilities. "It is my hope to embolden other disabled people to be able to advocate for themselves and to speak out about inaccessibility," she said. "They can do all these things if they really want to. Even if they're not seen, they can at least try to be the first."

Ethan Slater may be best known as the guy who Ariana Grande began dating when filming "Wicked" — but you may also know him from his film, TV, and theater work.

Slater got his start on stage when he was just 4 years old playing, wait for it, Toto the dog in "The Wizard of Oz." Talk about coming full circle. As a child, his love for musicals only grew and, eventually, he moved to New York to pursue acting. He landed the role of SpongeBob Squarepants in "The SpongeBob Musical" when he was still a sophomore in college, and would play the part for seven years. Since then, he's also appeared in a number of small TV roles in shows that include "Instinct" and "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel."

Not only did playing munchkin Boq in "Wicked" take Slater's career to new heights, it also introduced him to a new love interest. "It was an amazing year and a really beautiful thing, and I'm just really excited," Slater told GQ. "I'm just really, really proud of Ari and the work she's done on this. She's poured herself into it. I'm really proud that I got to be there for that part of it, and I'm really excited to be there for this next step of it when the world gets to see the amazing thing that she did."

Michelle Yeoh stars as Madame Morrible, Shiz University's headmistress and an eventual villain of the story. Chances are, you've seen Yeoh before. The actor got her start in film in the '80s, with numerous parts in martial arts movies, including "Tai Chi Master," "Butterfly and Sword," and "Supercop." In 1997, she appeared in "Tomorrow Never Dies," a James Bond movie, and in 2000, she starred in Ang Lee's cult classic "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" as the warrior and businesswoman Yu Shu Lien. "I really believe that this genre deserves more respect and dignity than it's ever been given," she told the BBC of the martial arts genre at the time.

More big projects soon came her way, including "Memoirs of a Geisha," "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor," "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2," and "Crazy Rich Asians." In 2023, she won her first Oscar for her role in "Everything Everywhere All at Once."

Jeff Goldblum is another "Wicked" star who will undoubtedly look extremely familiar — after all, his decades-long career has seen him take on roles in countless cult classics. He starred as Seth, aka the fly himself, in David Cronenberg's cult classic body-horror film "The Fly" in 1986. Throughout the '90s and 2000s, he played Dr. Ian Malcolm in the "Jurassic Park" franchise. And you may also recognize him from films like Wes Anderson's "The Grand Budapest Hotel," 1996's "Independence Day," or "The Big Chill" in 1983. Or perhaps you saw him in Netflix's 2024 modern Greek myth series "Kaos." The list goes on and on.

 Despite all of his success, Goldblum never takes it for granted. "I'm thrilled about it," he told W Magazine of his 2024 roles in "Wicked and "Kaos." "This year — and the last decade — has been gratifying and delicious and dreamy. I pinch myself every day. My gratitude is bursting — busted out all over."

You won't see Peter Dinklage in "Wicked," but you may recognize his voice — the actor was cast to play Dr. Dillamond, a CGI-talking goat and a professor at Shiz. Dinklage is no stranger to fantasy, having starred as Tyrion Lannister in "Game of Thrones." You may also remember him from his roles in "Elf," "The Station Agent," "Cyrano," or "X-Men," to name just a few of his long list of credits.

For Dinklage, making the film was a different experience from most of his work, as he did the entire thing in a sound booth. "But it's such an honor to be part of something this universally loved and amazingly creative," he said (via Cinema Express). "'Wicked' resonates because everyone feels like an outsider at some point. It's about defining your independence and strength within that feeling of isolation. Above all, it teaches kindness, which is the most important thing."

Bowen Yang plays Pfannee in "Wicked," a munchkin who befriends Glinda at Shiz. Yang has become a familiar face in recent years as a comedian. He joined the cast of "SNL" in 2019 and went on to star in "Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens" as Edmund. Other projects have included "The Lost City," "Fire Island," "Bros," and "Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai." Alongside Matt Rogers, Yang is also one of the co-hosts of hit pop culture podcast "Las Culturistas."

Although "Wicked" may be one of his biggest projects to date, Yang didn't exactly find the world of film easy to adjust to. "It was a gradual accumulation of idling, getting dressed up with nowhere to go, feeling like it was sanding down whatever I had preserved from the week before at 'SNL,'" Yang told The New Yorker. Eventually, Yang discovered he was struggling with "depersonalization," and since then, he has worked to build more self-care into his life.

Keala Settle plays Miss Coddle in "Wicked," a new character who was created for the film. Settle grew up in Hawaii before moving to London and then to New York to pursue a career in musical theater. She made her Broadway debut in "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert," before going on to work in "Les Miserables" and "Waitress," as well as "Sister Act" in London. You may also recognize her as Lettie from "The Greatest Showman" or Viv from the 2020 rom-com "All My Life."

Throughout her career, Settle felt that she couldn't be herself. "People recognise me for singing a song about being who you are, when that whole time I couldn't be who I was," she told Cambridge University's Varsity, referring to her song "This Is Me" from "The Greatest Showman." In "Wicked," however, Settle has finally found a way to embrace her true self. "I did what I needed to do, and got out. And it will be absolutely beautiful," she said.

Bronwyn James plays ShenShen in "Wicked," another one of Glinda's uppity Shiz friends. You may also know the British actor from her role as Fanny in "Harlots." Since 2016, James has popped up in dozens of other shows and films too, from "Call the Midwife" to "The Colour Room" to "Wild Bill."

James comes to "Wicked" as a long-time fan of the show. "It was actually the first show I ever saw on the West End; my first time being in London as a kid seeing it on the West End and since then I've seen it about seven times over the years," she told Revamp. So, naturally, landing a part in the film was a little surreal. As James recalled, throughout the long audition process, she became determined to take part in the film. "I have to be in this film, it doesn't matter in what capacity," she remembered thinking. "So actually getting to be a named character was just wonderful."

British actor Adam James was cast as Glinda's father in the film adaptation of "Wicked." "Blink and you'll miss it but I am on that boat?!?" James wrote in a caption on Instagram about his appearance in a promotional video for the film.

James has been acting both on stage and on screen for years. In fact, since getting his start on the screen in the '90s, he's racked up over 100 credits. Some more memorable roles include 2001's "Band of Brothers," in which he played Cleveland O. Petty, "Silent Witness," "A Little Chaos," "Doctor Foster," Netflix's "You," and "The Buccaneers."

On stage, his career has been equally prolific. James' roles have included "Bull," "King Charles III," "Much Ado About Nothing," and many more. He's been nominated for two Olivier Awards and one Critics Circle Award.

Sharon D. Clarke has a cameo in "Wicked" as the Midwife. As fans of the Broadway musical will remember, the midwife is the first person to see Elphaba after she is born — and the first to declare that she is green.

Born and raised in London, Clarke has established herself as both a stage and screen actor over the past few decades, with roles in numerous plays and TV shows. You may have spotted her in "Holby City," "Doctor Who," or as the star in Channel 5's detective show "Ellis." Alongside the press tour of "Wicked," Clarke also stars in the National Theatre's production of "The Importance of Being Earnest."

Over the course of her career, Clarke has seen the industry slowly begin to diversify. "I went to my first Olivier Awards in 1996, and myself and Adrian Lester were the only two Black people in the room, with our families," she told The Guardian. "It's completely different now. And when I first started being seen for TV roles it was just endless nurses, because as far as society was concerned, that was what Black women did." As for what's coming next, Clarke is ready to see what happens. "The universe has been wonderful to me in my chosen career, so I will continue to leave things in the universe's hands," she said.