‘Wicked: For Good’ director explains why Dorothy’s face isn’t shown in new film

Director Jon M. Chu is letting the cat out of a bag about one of the most intriguing creative choices in the second part of his adaptation Wicked: For Good.

In the newly-released adaptation of Winnie Holzman and Stephen Schwartz’s hit Broadway musical, Dorothy’s face was largely hidden. Following the film’s release, Jon M. Chu sat down with Business Insider for an interview, where he revealed the reason behind not showing her face.

He shared that the movie takes place in the magical land first seen in the 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz, which stars Judy Garland as Dorothy, but she wasn’t featured in the new film.

“At the auditions, we would put a sheet up, looking at the performer’s silhouette. Through that, I was looking at how she could walk, but also, could I guide her in that way? The person had to have youthful energy, so we ultimately chose a dancer,” he shared.

Chu also revealed that some deleted scenes do show Dorothy’s face, but they were cut because her presence would have distracted from the main story.

“We had opportunities to show more, and we shot some things where you could see her face, but our intention, from the beginning, was not to show her face. But was I sure of that choice? We did get options for it, but every time, it was a distraction,” he added.

Wicked: For Good is the second of Chu’s two-part adaptation of the beloved musical which stars Ariana Grande as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elpheba.