'Wicked' coming to the big screen

With the many projects focused on 'The Wizard Of Oz' whizzing around Hollywood, Universal have thrown another into the mix in the form of a 'Wicked' film adapted from the hit musical of the same name.

It is reported that Universal have met with four film makers; JJ Abrams, Rob Marshall, James Mangold and Glee creator Ryan Murphy on the idea of directing the eventual film.

Wicked, adapted from Gregory Maguire’s bestseller about the early days, private lives and real motivations of Glinda the Good and The Wicked Witch of the West respectively and was originally aimed for the screen years ago. But producer Marc Platt and Universal opted to turn it into a stage musical instead, with the result spawning one of the most successful theatrical productions of all time. Adding up all the various city-based and touring productions, Wicked has earned more than $2 billion so far. Which might go some way to explain why no one has been in a hurry to exploit its massive film opportunities at least until now.