Can Snow White Learn From Wicked‘s Success?

Wicked reignited audience interest in fantasy live-action adaptations, after years of malaise, and Snow White has the chance to be propelled by that same energy. The new musical take from Marc Webb (The Amazing Spider-Man) on the fairy tale that built Walt Disney animation as we know it will be the first live-action reimagining of the year among a surprisingly busy slate for the field, including DreamWorks’ How to Train Your Dragon and another Disney release, Lilo & Stitch. Jon M. Chu’s cinematic musical triumph brought back interest in fantasy adaptations in a real way by leaning into its roots wholeheartedly. It created an Oz with grand, lived-in sets; attempted to make CG backgrounds and staging as unobtrusive to the audience as possible; and of course played into the electric chemistry of its powerhouse leads. There was definite magic in its success, and Wicked: For Good will hope to replicate that later this year. It’s the sort of magic that we’d expect from Disney, but it’s som ... Read full article.