Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Wicked: For Good
Wicked: For Good is now playing in theaters, featuring some truly wonderful Easter eggs and references. Continuing the story of Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo) and Glinda Upland (Ariana Grande-Butera), Wicked: For Good is chock-full of epic callbacks and ties not only to Wicked: Part One, but also the original stage show, book, and 1939’s The Wizard of Oz.
Just like in the first movie, the attention to detail in Wicked: For Good is all kinds of impressive. While this list won’t feature every single reprise, parallel, and callback (there are so many!), here are 20 of the biggest and best Easter eggs, references, and ties we found in Wicked: For Good.
Wicked: For Good’s Title Card Mirrors Part One (Nodding To “The Wizard of Oz”)
Just like in 2024’s Wicked: Part One, the opening title card for Wicked: For Good is set in the same font as 1939’s The Wizard of Oz, a wonderful callback to one of the most legendary Hollywood movies of all time.
A Rainbow During Glinda’s Childhood
A key flashback to Glinda’s childhood confirms she’s always had a desire to be magical, receiving a magic wand as a birthday gift. Unable to cast spells herself, Glinda ends up taking credit for a rainbow that has coincidentally emerged outside. Of course, “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” is one of the most famous songs sung by Judy Garland’s Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz.
Alice Fearn As Glinda’s Mother
Briefly featured in Wicked: Part One alongside Glinda’s father, aka “Popsicle”, her mother (played by Alice Fearn) gets a somewhat larger role in Glinda’s childhood flashback. Previously, Alice Fearn played Elphaba in the West End production of Wicked from 2017 to 2019.
The Gale Force
Wicked: For Good reveals that Fiyero has been made captain of “The Gale Force”, the Wizard’s secret police tasked with hunting down Elphaba.
A fitting name considering Madame Morrible’s ability to control the weather, combined with Dorothy’s last name, The Gale Force was not a name used in the original Wicked stage show, but instead comes from the original Wicked novel by author Gregory Maguire.
Our Wizard Lies
Crashing the Yellow Brick Road ceremony, Elphaba writes in the clouds, “Our Wizard Lies“. This is some major foreshadowing to the Wicked Witch’s future sky message seen in The Wizard of OZ: “Surrender Dorothy.”
“Blending With Foliage”
Pursued by Fiyero and the Gale Force, Elphaba is shown hiding behind a group of tree branches. This is a solid callback to Fiyero and Elphaba’s first meeting in Wicked: Part One in the woods, and Fiyero’s joke comment that she “must have blended in with the foliage” after nearly trampling her with his horse.
“No Place Like Home”
One of two brand-new Wicked songs written by original composer Stephen Schwartz, Elphaba’s new song “No Place Like Home” speaks to her desire to fight for Oz despite being ostracized, while trying to convince the animals to stay and help her fight back. Naturally, it’s also the classic phrase said by Dorothy Gale at the end of The Wizard of Oz to get back home in Kansas.
Nessa’s Striped Socks
Approached by her sister in Munchkinland, Nessarose reveals she’s wearing her signature silver slippers as well as a pair of striped socks. The socks in particular are a direct tie to the Wicked Witch of the East’s death in The Wizard of Oz, where the only thing audiences can see of her under Dorothy’s house are her slippers and similarly striped socks.
Nessa’s Slippers Changing Color
Nessa’s slippers are silver rather than ruby, as silver was their original color in the original Wizard of Oz book by Frank L. Baum (the movie’s switch to ruby was to show off the new advancements in Technicolor better).
However, Wicked: For Good sees the slippers glowing red after Elphaba casts her spell to make Nessa feel “lighter than air“, just like she did with Boq on the night of the Ozdust, paying homage to both the movie and the book simultaneously.
“I’m Off To See The Wizard”
After saving Boq from Nessa’s spell (transforming him into the Tin Man), Elphaba tells her sister that she’s “off to see the Wizard“, a callback to the classic song from 1939’s “The Wizard of Oz”, sung by Dorothy and her companions.
