10 Even More Upcoming Movies That Are Already Doomed

6. Wicked

The Crow 2024
Warner Bros.

The upcoming adaption of Stephen Schwartz's musical has plenty going for it. It has a musically-experienced director at the helm, the cast is filled with gifted singers - including Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, and Keala Settle - and based on the grandiose trailer, Wicked has captured the spirit of the musical and the original Wizard of Oz story.

Despite that, cynicism began to arise when it was announced Wicked would be a two-parter. To be fair, some stories can't be done justice in a single film. For example, Dune's plot is so dense, it needed to be split into multiple parts. The same cannot be said about Wicked, though. 

Considering a typical performance of the Broadway musical is 150 minutes, there's no justifiable reason to chop the movie adaptation in two. Having said that, a lot of two-parters have made bank, including Harry Potter, The Avengers, and The Hobbit, though Wicked may not have that same level of success. 

In recent years, musicals haven't been the moneymakers they once were. Steven Spielberg's West Side Story tanked, The Colour Purple didn't break even, and Disney's recent musicals have struggled to make a profit. If these iconic stories can't bring in the dough, half of a musical has even less chance.

Contributor

James Egan has been with Whatculture for five years and prominently works on Horror, Film, and Video Games. He's written over 80 books including 1000 Facts about Horror Movies Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about The Greatest Films Ever Made Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about Video Games Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts About James Bond 1000 Facts About TV Shows