When others ran from the musical, Jon M. Chu and 'Wicked' embraced it

NEW YORK (AP) — “Musical” has been a dirty word lately in Hollywood marketing, but “Wicked” director Jon M. Chu isn’t having it.

Of course, there’s no running from the term when you’re bringing to the screen one of the most popular Broadway shows of the 21st century, or telling a story so connected to one of the most beloved movie musicals ever, “The Wizard of Oz.” But Chu, the 44-year-old filmmaker of 2021’s “In the Heights” who as a young man was transported by “Wicked” on the stage, is a true believer in form.

“When words aren’t enough, music is the extension of your expression. That’s what movies do, and that’s what musicals do,” says Chu. “When it’s tied into their communication of where characters are at in this moment and time, it’s the most beautiful thing.”

“Wicked,” which Universal Pictures opens Thursday in theaters, is one of the fall’s biggest gambles not just because it’s been split in two (the second “Wicked” film will arrive in fall 2025), but because it’s going all-out for a big-screen, song-and-dance spectacular at a time when other films (see “Wonka” and “Mean Girls”) have sought to shroud their musical underpinnings.

“Everyone knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, once in a lifetime to make a movie of this scale, of this moment when cinema is being questioned of what place it has in our life,” says Chu. “We had to shoot the moon.”

“Wicked,” written by Winnie Holzman (who penned the book to the musical) and Dana Fox, stars Cynthia Erivo as the green-skinned Elphaba Thropp, who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West, and Ariana Grande as Galinda, the future Good Witch of the South.

Various forms of a “Wicked” movie been in development almost since the Broadway show opened in 2003 — earlier, in fact, because producer Marc Platt initially developed Gregory Maguire’s book “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” as a film before shifting to the stage.

Over the years, J.J. Abrams, Ryan Murphy, Rob Marshall and Stephen Daldry have all been attached to it, along with a wide array of actors.

But Chu and Platt, who are also together developing a Britney Spears biopic, consider it destiny that Chu would helm “Wicked.” During a recent interview by Zoom, Chu said he identifies strongly with the story’s themes of taking alternate routes to Emerald City.

“‘The Wizard of Oz’ had such an influence of my own family — an immigrant family that came to America with these dreams,” says Chu, whose parents were born in Taiwan and China. “We’re going through such a changing period in our culture, and this hit it so on the nose — that change is difficult, that the Yellow Brick Road may not be the path for all of us."

Much of “Wicked” will hinge on its two leads (though the supporting cast includes Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero and Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible). Chu says he never did a chemistry read with Erivo and Grande together — even though Grande auditioned numerous times.

“Ari, she came in five times for us. Every time, she was the most interesting person in the room,” Chu says. “I resisted. I was like, ‘There’s no way Ariana Grande, the person we think of, can handle this, carrying a movie, her first movie.’ Wait until you see her in this. She will blow your mind and break your hearts.”

Erivo, who was already won a Tony, Grammy and Emmy, and been nominated for an Oscar, was an easier call.

“I knew Cynthia could do ‘Defy Gravity’ anytime, anywhere,” says Chu. “What I didn’t know was how vulnerable she could be. But when she came in and sang ‘The Wizard and I,’ she showed her wounds. To me, that’s why I fell in love with movies, when you get to see someone so raw.”

The first “Wicked” film will emphasize Elphaba's transformation, the second Glinda's.

“That structure and those journeys made it that much easier to see, oh, there’s two different stories,” says Platt, the veteran producer of “La La Land,” “Into the Woods” and “Legally Blonde.” “They’re the same story and it’s about both of them all the time. But, really, one character changes significantly through the first and one changes significantly in the second.”

Measuring up to not just “Wicked" but “The Wizard of Oz” was an added pressure that led to some extremes. Chu, for example, had nine million tulips grown for his sets.

“Very few filmmakers have had the opportunity to paint Oz, and I took that very seriously,” says Chu. “We built a lot of sets. A 16-ton Emerald City train. We built Emerald City. We built Munchkin Land. You could walk around. You could go into stores. You could look at the labels in the stores!”

This story first moved Sept. 7, 2024, and has been updated ahead of the release of “Wicked.”

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Ariana Grande, as Glinda, left, and Cynthia Erivo, as Elphaba, in a scene from the film "Wicked." (Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

Ariana Grande poses for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of the film 'Wicked' on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)

Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande pose for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of the film 'Wicked' on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)

Cynthia Erivo poses for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of the film 'Wicked' on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)

Cynthia Erivo, from left, Jon M. Chu, and Ariana Grande attend the premiere of "Wicked" at the Museum of Modern Art on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande, with director Jon M. Chu, right, on the set of the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande, with director Jon M. Chu, right, on the set of the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Jeff Goldblum as The Wizard of Oz, left, and Michelle Yeoh as Madam Morrible in a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows director Jon M. Chu, center, on the set of "Wicked." (Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba in the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Ariana Granda as Glinda in the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rising after market superstar Nvidia and another round of companies said they’re making fatter profits than expected. The S&P 500 added 0.4% in early trading Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 123 points, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.5%. The moves were part of a busy day for financial markets worldwide, as crude oil prices continued to rise. A barrel of U.S. crude topped $70 amid escalations in the Russia-Ukraine war. Bitcoin, meanwhile, topped $98,000 for the first time and stormed closer to the $100,000 mark to continue its strong run since Election Day.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

Wall Street is on track to open with gains following another strong earnings report from chipmaker Nvidia even if it didn't meet the sky-high expectations of investors.

Futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.2% before the bell Thursday, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.3%.

Nvidia's latest sales and profit report again topped analysts' expectations, but the chipmaker's shares were down less than 1% just hours before Thursday's opening bell.

Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said the market reaction to Nvidia’s performance was partly due to the positioning of investors before quarterly results were published.

It’s grown so fast, with its stock nearly tripling for the year so far, that pressure has grown for it to show it can keep leapfrogging past high expectations on Wall Street.

Shares of Google parent company Alphabet also retreated less than 1% after U.S. regulators asked judge to break up the tech giant by forcing it to sell its industry-leading Chrome web browser. In a 23-page document filed late Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice called for sweeping punishments that would include restrictions preventing Android from favoring its own search engine.

Regulators stopped short of demanding Google sell Android, but left the door open to it if the company's oversight committee continues to see evidence of misconduct.

U.S. benchmark crude prices are up 5% this week and on Thursday broke above $70 per barrel with Russia's war in Ukraine intensifying. After the Biden administration allowed Ukraine to attack Russia with longer-range American-made ATACMS missiles, Russian President Vladimir Putin lowered the threshold for using his nuclear arsenal, with the new doctrine announced this week permitting a potential nuclear response by Moscow even to a conventional attack on Russia by any nation that is supported by a nuclear power.

Deere & Co. rose 1.3% after the farm equipment manufacturer posted surprisingly strong fourth-quarter results.

Shares of India's Adani Enterprises plunged 23% Thursday after the U.S. charged founder Gautam Adani, 62, in a federal indictment with securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud. The Indian businessman and one of the world’s richest people is accused of duping investors by concealing that his company’s huge solar energy project on the subcontinent was being facilitated by an alleged bribery scheme.

At midday in Europe, France's CAC 40 lost 0.3%, while Germany's DAX rose 0.3%. Britain's FTSE 100 also added 0.3%.

In Asia, Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 shed 0.9% to finish at 38,026.17, as shares in semiconductor equipment maker Advantest Corp. dropped 1.6%. Chip maker Tokyo Electron shed 0.4%.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.1% to 8,323.00. South Korea's Kospi declined less than 0.1% to 2,480.63. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dipped 0.5% to 19,601.11, while the Shanghai Composite was little changed, rising less than 0.1% to 3,370.40.

U.S. crude gained $1.35 to $70.10 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added $1.32 to $74.13 a barrel.

The U.S. dollar fell to 154.49 Japanese yen from 155.31 yen. The euro cost $1.0549, inching up from $1.0546.

Bitcoin is trading at $97,550 early Thursday after eclipsing $98,000 for the first time.

FILE - People walk under a sidewalk shed near the New York Stock Exchange on Oct. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)

The facade of the New York Stock Exchange is illuminated on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

People walk by monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index and Japan's foreign exchange rate against the U.S. dollar at a securities firm in Tokyo, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

Travelers walk by monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

A woman covering herself from the rain walks by monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

People walk by monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

A woman walks by a monitor showing Japan's foreign exchange rate against the U.S. dollar at a securities firm in Tokyo, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)