Finally, some more major casting is underway for Sam Raimi’s Oz: The Great & Powerful! We already know that James Franco (Your Highness) and Mila Kunis (Friends with Benefits) are on board. However Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn) has been offered the delightfully surprising part of Glinda the Good Witch, according to Reuters.
Franco will be playing the title role, while Kunis is his love interest, a witch named Theodora. In addition to Williams as a cast member, it is rumored that Rachel Weisz (The Lovely Bones) is attached to play Theodora’s sister, Evanora, a bad witch who wants to lure her sister back to the darkness. The website also adds that Franco’s character, Oz, is “a snake oil salesman.” (Sidenote: IMDB lists Russian actress Natalie Gal of Fast Five as an unnamed Munchkin.)
All Headline News says that Raimi was seeking two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank (Conviction) for Glinda, but Disney preferred Williams. In addition, indieWIRE shares that it was also rumored that leggy Gossip Girl star Blake Lively was mentioned for the part as well, but given her recent commitment to the Oliver Stone crime thriller Savages she’s otherwise booked.
Here’s a little back story behind the history of the beautiful and moral character: The original Glinda cast in the 1939 film version (that we all know and love starring Judy Garland as the naive Dorothy) was Billie Burke who was fifty-three years old at the time of filming. She was a stage star earlier and married Florenz Ziegfeld, creator of the famous Ziegfeld Follies. The Broadway hit Wicked, which opened at the Gershwin Theatre in 2003, also features Glinda the Good Witch. Tony award-winning actress Kristin Chenoweth earned her second nomination in the production for Best Leading Actress in a Musical and she is featured on the original cast soundtrack.
As for Williams in the role, I think it’s a perfect match. While she is known for her more serious films like Blue Valentine and Brokeback Mountain, she recently wrapped on the biopic My Week with Marilyn, as sex icon Marilyn Monroe. Playing a lighter and happier part would definitely help broaden her audience. And as my fellow Movie Buzzers writer Alex said, it’d be nice to see her smile for a change.
What do you think of this casting decision? Do you think two-time Academy Award nominee can succeed in this adventure fantasy? Any other thoughts on casting news for this prequel to The Wizard of Oz?
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