Someone tell L. Frank Baum that “The Wizard of Oz” is the gift that just keeps giving.
Yesterday, “Wicked,” in which the Wizard becomes a villain after decades of just bumbling around, crossed the $200 Million mark. It’s been in release 9 full days (the first was previews). The total now is $214 million.
“Wicked” started a little slowly but has soared over the holiday weekend. Original estimates of $175 million are now out the window. I guess this explains the musical’s enduring popularity on Broadway. It’s been playing for 300 years and is always full.
As I said yesterday, music from the movie is also booming on the charts.
What happened to the poor Wizard anyway? He landed in Oz and put on a pretty good show. When Dorothy arrives, he’s revealed as kind of a nitwit circus barker. According to “Wicked,” he’s been turned into an evil guy. It’s not fair. And will we ever know where he went in the hot air balloon?
Elsewhere, “Gladiator II” is no slouch. The Ridley Scott film should hit $100 million today. Reading the trades and Oscar progs, I see there’s a new PR idea that “Wicked” should win Best Picture because the Wizard is supposed to be Trump. This is hooey. If “Wicked” makes $500 million, its Oscar chances are diminished greatly I think. But it will get a record number of nominations.
A more interesting story is about “Conclave,” which is number 1 on the home viewing chart and still attracting theater audiences. Edward Berger’s brilliant film deserves many awards, if not the biggest ones. Ralph Fiennes and co. are sublime.
