Wicked movie loses director Stephen Daldry
© Dan Wooller for WhatsOnStage
Stephen Daldry has, according to reports, parted ways for the big screen version of Wicked.
Citing scheduling conflicts, Daldry will no longer help bring the massive musical to the big screen. It's no surprise – Daldry is a hot commodity in the worlds of both stage and screen, having just picked up another Tony Award nomination for The Inheritance.
During the pandemic, Wicked was quietly withdrawn from distributor Universal's release schedule (it was previously plugged into a release next Christmas) and no replacement director has been announced.
With music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, the show is based on Gregory Maguire's novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West and is adapted for the stage by Winnie Holzman. Musical staging is by Wayne Cilento and direction by Joe Mantello.
Now in its 15th year in the West End, Wicked has won over 100 major awards, including ten WhatsOnStage Awards ( three times claiming the "Best West End Show" prize), two Olivier Awards and three Tony Awards.
No matter when the film eventually lands on the big screen, it will no doubt be a "Popular" affair – with legions of fans across the world and some starry names said to be orbiting major roles.
In the meantime, one of the piece's producers Marc Platt is overseeing another musical movie right now – Dear Evan Hansen.
