The brand-new trailer for Wicked unveils several key moments from the movie, featuring Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande and Ariana’s boyfriend, Ethan Slater. Based on the original Broadway musical, the upcoming film adaptation is a prequel to The Wizard of Oz. And the trailer begins by inviting viewers to “discover everything that happened before Dorothy.”
At the beginning of the trailer, which dropped on Thursday, September 5, viewers hear Ariana’s character, Glinda, telling the people of Oz, “Fellow Ozians, the Wicked Witch of the West is dead.” Ariana is also heard narrating, “Let me tell you the whole story. Our paths did cross at school. She had her secrets.”
The female leads’ voices are then heard belting out the impressive notes to “Defying Gravity” as the teaser unravels more of Cynthia’s character, Elphaba, who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West.
As several flashes of Elphaba’s scenes play out, the trailer displays an emotional conversation between Ariana, 31, and Cynthia, 37. Their characters share a tearful moment when Glinda places the black witch hat on top of Elphaba’s head.
Toward the end of the clip, Jeff Goldblum‘s character, The Wizard, is heard saying, “The best way to bring folks together is to give ’em a real good enemy,” referring to Elphaba.
After Glinda tells Elphaba not to be “afraid,” Elphaba insists, “It’s The Wizard who should be afraid of me.” Ethan’s character, Boq, then appears looking up toward the sky just as Elphaba flies away on her broomstick.
The cast of Wicked has been gearing up for its highly anticipated release. Earlier this week, Ariana shared a behind-the-scenes selfie of her and Cynthia wearing their costumes. In her Instagram caption, the “Break Free” artist wrote, “80 days,” referring to the movie’s release.
This is the first clip that unveiled Ethan’s character. He and Ariana started dating over the summer of 2023 after they worked together on the film.
Part 1 of Wicked premieres in theaters on November 22. Part 2 will be released on November 26, 2025.
