“It Time to Try Defying Gravity” because Part One of “Wicked” is now in cinemas.

Adapted from the popular Broadway musical based on Gregory Maguire’s book and a revelatory prequel to “The Wizard of Oz,” “Wicked” is the first of a two-part epic.

USA TODAY movie critic Brian Truitt gave the film ★★★ out of four, writing that “even with a few missteps, it’s easy to get swept up in director Jon M. Chu’s colorful spectacle (rated PG).”

“The movie musical is both superfluous and splendiferous, yet it casts a big-hearted spell that you’d have to be wicked not to appreciate at least a little. The song-filled character study of the Wicked Witch of the West’s early years ekes out great performances from Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande that’ll wow musical theater kids and old-school “Oz” fans alike,” Truitt wrote in his review, adding the film manages to “at least pulls off a truly soaring closing cliffhanger.”

With Part 1 of “Wicked” now in cinemas, anticipation for the second part, which is expected to pick up from where the first part ended, presumably beginning with the song “Thank Goodness,” is high.

“Wicked” director Jon M. Chu, in April 2022, had announced the film would be split into two parts because it “became impossible” to shrink the Broadway play “into a single film without doing some real damage to it.”

“As we prepared the production over the last year, it became impossible to wrestle the story of ‘Wicked’ into a single film without doing some real damage to it,” Chu had written in a social media post. “As we tried to cut songs or trim characters, those decisions began to feel like fatal compromises to the source material that has entertained us all for so many years.”

He continued: “We decided to give ourselves a bigger canvas and make not just one ‘Wicked’ movie but two! With more space, we can tell the story of Wicked as it was meant to be told while bringing even more depth and surprise to the journeys for these beloved characters.”

‘Wicked’ Part 2 release date

Wicked Part 2 is expected to hit screens on November 21, 2025 — one year (minus a day) after the first installment, according to Universal Pictures.

Both “Wicked” and “Wicked: Part 2” were shot back-to-back between December 2022 and January 2024, according to Forbes, which means the second installment of the “Wicked” has already been filmed.

‘Wicked’ Part 2 cast

While Universal Studios has not yet announced the full cast list for Part 2 or hinted if there would be new characters, it is likely that much of the original cast will be returning including:

Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba Thropp
Ariana Grande as Glinda Upland
Michelle Yeoh as Madam Morrible
Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard of Oz
Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero Tigelaar
Ethan Slater as Boq Woodsman
Marissa Bode as Nessarose Thropp
Bowen Yang as Pfannee
Bronwyn James as ShenShen
Keala Settle as Miss Coddle
Peter Dinklage as the voice of Dr. Dillamond

How to watch ‘Wicked’

The only way to watch “Wicked” at this point is to catch it in a cinema near you. The film is not currently available to stream. However, it is expected to be available to stream on Peacock in the future.