Is Dorothy in Wicked? Director reveals how she will be included in Part 2

25 November 2024, 13:21 | Updated: 25 November 2024, 13:22

By Sam Prance

Fans of the musical will already know that Dorothy plays a pivotal role in Wicked Part 2.

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So you've watched Wicked: Part I and are wondering if Dorothy will factor into Part II? You've come to the right place.

Wicked famously acts as a prequel, villain origin story for the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz. As a result, it's no surprise that Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion all play a role in the Wicked movie. However, they only briefly feature in Part I, leading fans to wonder how much they will appear in Part 2.

If you've watched the musical and The Wizard of Oz, you'll already have a pretty good idea of the role Dorothy plays in Part II. Now, Wicked director Jon M. Chu has teased that Dorothy could have an even larger role in the movie.

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Speaking to Variety about Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion's brief cameo in Wicked: Part I, Jon said: "The Wizard of Oz is potentially a dream. It’s a world where there are no real stakes. Knowing that Elphaba and Glinda live in a world of real stakes, we had to reestablish with the audience that this was real."

He added: "So we dropped everyone into the crime scene, maybe the most famous crime scene ever in cinema and literature, of the iconic hat in the puddle. We see the full landscape of Oz. It’s this living, breathing place with real cultures, so we immediately establish this is not a dream world."

Explaining further, Jon said: "Seeing those four characters also triggers something in your mind; you connect those characters with this place. And we will revisit those characters in movie two."

As it stands, it's currently unclear who has been cast as Dorothy in the film. We only see Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion from behind in the first movie.

Is Dorothy in Wicked: Part 2? Picture: Universal Pictures

Discussing Dorothy's role in Part II in more detail, Jon teased: "In the show, Dorothy is around. They have to intersect, and you can only tease it so much. I won’t say whether she’s a character, necessarily, in movie two. There’s a part of me that wants everyone’s Dorothy to be the whatever Dorothy they want."

He added: "And yet, there is interaction and some crossover. So I’ll leave that up to 'Part Two'.” In other words, we will be seeing Dorothy again in some capacity at least. If you want to find out what happens to Dorothy in Act II of the musical, scroll down.

WARNING: WICKED ACT II SPOILERS BELOW

What happens to Dorothy in Wicked: Part 2? Picture: Alamy

In Act II, Wicked's timeline catches up with the timeline of The Wizard of Oz and Elphaba's sister Nessarose becomes the witch who is killed by Dorothy's house. We don't see Dorothy on stage but Elphaba confronts Glinda over Nessarose's death and vows to get Nessarose's shoes back from Dorothy.

Similar to the Wizard of Oz, Elphaba captures Dorothy and refuses to release her unless she gives her Nessarose's shoes. Glinda tries to intervene but Elphaba realises that she will never be able to clear her name in the public imagination.

Dorothy then throws a bucket of water on Elphaba and as far as Elphaba and Oz are aware, she melts and dies. However, she actually faked her death and secretly flees Oz with Fiyero.

Whether or not we see Dorothy do this or anything else on screen is yet to be seen.

Bookmark this page and we'll keep you posted with any updates.