Kristin Chenoweth gets ’emotional’ after watching the new ‘Wicked’ film … but is she in it?

It’s been more than 20 years since Kristin Chenoweth starred as the Good Witch Glinda on Broadway — and she still can’t get enough of “Wicked.”
As the fourth-longest running Broadway musical recently turned 21, Chenoweth saw the new movie adaptation from start to finish — a few weeks ahead of its release later this month. And she had nothing but praise.
“Oh my gosh. I just saw the movie and I’m dying. I’m deceased. I’m actually dead. I’m not here,” the Broadway star said in a new Instagram video. “People are not going to be well when they see this film. It is so good. It is so special.”
Chenoweth went on to praise “Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon Chu for his vision, and the film’s main stars: Cynthia Erivo in the role of the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba, and Ariana Grande, who is taking on the role Chenoweth brought to life on Broadway back in October 2003.
“I was so moved, emotional, happy, filled with joy,” Chenoweth said. “Please everybody, go see ‘Wicked,’ you’ll be blessed.”
Chenoweth is overflowing with praise for “Wicked,” but there’s at least one part of the film she’s remaining tight-lipped about: Whether or not she has a cameo.
As the premiere fast approaches, fans are wondering if the original stars will make an appearance in the new film.
Earlier this year, while attending the RootsTech conference in Salt Lake City, Chenoweth didn’t completely shut down the idea that she and her “Wicked” co-star Idina Menzel appear in Chu’s film.
“I can’t confirm or deny whether we’re in it or not,” she told reporters. “I just can say that it’s going to be spectacular.”
During that Salt Lake visit, Chenoweth reflected on the smash success of the Broadway musical that has had major fan support from the very start.
“When we opened, we got not the best reviews, and Idina was quite upset,” Chenoweth recalled. “And I said to her, ‘Girl, at the end of Act 1, you are flying and defying gravity. … It ain’t gonna matter what the critics think. Let’s listen to the audience. And that audience leapt to their feet and we knew we had a hit. Did we know it was going to be a juggernaut? No.”
Now, Grande and Erivo are helping to bring the story to a new generation.
Chenoweth initially met Grande several years ago when the budding artist came backstage to meet her during a production of “Wicked.” During a 2019 appearance on “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” Chenoweth recalled how impressed she was after hearing Grande sing a little during that brief meeting backstage.
“I gave her a wand and I said, ‘Just remember to follow your passion. Do what you love,’” Chenoweth said, per Deseret News.
Now, in somewhat of a full-circle moment, Grande is taking on that very role.
“I was like, ‘Would there be a world that my little baby, Ariana, plays me?’ And this happened, and we both cried,” Chenoweth previously told reporters at RootsTech. “And then Cynthia Erivo is one of the most spectacular artists of our time, this voice is otherworldly.”
The new “Wicked” adaptation will be told in two parts — the first part premieres Nov. 22, with the second film releasing in November 2025. Some fans were surprised by the two-part format considering the musical has a 2 hour and 45 minute runtime, as the Deseret News reported. But according to Chenoweth, that’s part of Chu’s efforts to put his own stamp on the story.
“(Chu) said, ‘I’ve got to go completely different from the original. I needed to because you guys (me and Idina) made our marks in that so strong, we had to do something different,’” Chenoweth said. I really admire the way he did it.”