All The Actors Who Auditioned For Wicked, From Lady Gaga To Reneé Rapp
This movie almost looked so different.
Choosing which witch to helm the Wicked movies was a long process. The film adaptations were first announced back in 2012, but a lot changed in the decade-long process of getting the massive fantasy musical made. Yes, that includes the cast list.
After several years of delays and swaps in creative control, Wicked finally cast its lead roles in 2021 with Cynthia Erivo as the powerful outcast Elphaba and Ariana Grande as the popular witch Glinda. Although both singers are superstars in their own right, they did have to audition for these highly coveted roles, which were made iconic by Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth on Broadway. As you might expect, a ton of other A-list singers and actors also went out for parts in the movies.
Before Erivo was defying gravity and Grande was tossing her hair, these were the stars who almost got cast in Wicked.
Lady Gaga as Elphaba
Mother Monster almost transformed into the ultimate wicked witch. An earlier version of Wicked, which would have been directed by The Crown’s Stephen Daldry, was going to star Lady Gaga as Elphaba. “[Daldry and Gaga] had meetings, the two of them, about the character and who she would be. [Gaga] was essentially cast in his version,” a source told Page Six on Nov. 19.
Lea Michele as Elphaba
It’s unclear if Glee star Lea Michele actually auditioned for Elphaba, but she certainly made her interest in the role known during the time of casting. When asked if she’d want the part in 2019, Michele threw her pointed hat into the conversation.
“I don’t think that they’ve gotten to the point of talking to people about it yet, if they have they haven’t called me,” Michele said. “But, yes I’m, like, backstage painting myself green just waiting.”
Jessie J as Elphaba
As with Michele, it’s also not confirmed if Jessie J officially auditioned for Elphaba, but the rumor mill claims she was up for the green witch. She also suspiciously posted a clip of herself singing “Defying Gravity” to social media right at the time the Wicked cast was about to be announced in 2021.
Amanda Seyfried as Galinda
Amanda Seyfried has been very candid about her audition to play Glinda. “While I was playing Elizabeth [Holmes on The Dropout], on the weekends I was auditioning in person to play Glinda in the movie version of Wicked — because I wanted it that much,” Seyfried told Backstage in 2022. “I literally bent over backwards while playing the hardest role of my life. But I think it also taught me how far I’ve come as a singer, which I really wanted to prove.”
A clip of Seyfried singing “Popular” has since gone viral.
Reneé Rapp as Glinda
Reneé Rapp is used to being the popular girl in musicals after playing Regina George in Mean Girls, so of course she’d come to mind when casting Glinda. Rapp confirmed she auditioned for the part during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live in 2022.
Dove Cameron as Glinda
Before Grande’s casting was revealed, Dove Cameron felt like an obvious choice to play Glinda. After all, she played the OG Glinda Kristin Chenoweth’s daughter in two musical projects before: Descendants and Hairspray Live. Cameron confirmed she tried out for the role in a 2023 interview with TheWrap.
“I definitely went out for it,” Cameron said. “I know that for everybody who did go out for it, it was a very long process. It was one of the longer processes I’ve been a part of.”
Shawn Mendes as Fiyero
There was one point when Shawn Mendes was almost dancing through life. When Daldry was still attached as Wicked’s director in the late 2010s, he apparently wanted the Canadian singer to play Fiyero, per Page Six’s sources.
Nick and Joe Jonas as Fiyero
There was also a bit of brotherly competition for the part of Fiyero. Nick Jonas revealed he and his older brother Joe both auditioned for the carefree prince.
“Joe and I both went out, and we didn’t get it,” Nick told Variety in 2023. “I’m a huge fan of the show, and that’s a role I always thought it would be fun to play.”
Jennifer Lopez as Madame Morrible
Apparently, J.Lo was vying to show off her villainous side as Wicked’s storm-conjuring baddie Madame Morrible. An insider claimed that Lopez tried out for the role, but it eventually went to Michelle Yeoh instead.
