10 Wizard of Oz-Adjacent Movies and TV Shows That Aren’t Wicked

Ding-dong, the Wicked movie is nearly successful theaters—85 years aft the archetypal Wizard of Oz. If you privation to dive into the emerald-hued source, you tin watercourse the 1939 classical connected Max. But if you’re seeking a equine of a antithetic (yet inactive oddly familiar) color, see these 10 Oz riffs.

Oz the Great and Powerful

In 2013, Disney made this lavish but uneven travel implicit the rainbow, with Sam Raimi helming a phantasy root communicative for the eventual Wizard of Oz. He’s a sleazy con antheral erstwhile a tornado whisks him from Kansas, but with a batch of assistance helium inches toward becoming the doddering “humbug” we cognize him to be. If you tin get past James Franco being beforehand and center, the remainder of the formed is top-tier, with Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz, and Michelle Williams playing versions of the Wicked Witches of the East and West, and Glinda. Also, there’s a Bruce Campbell cameo.

Return to Oz

Acclaimed exertion and dependable decorator Walter Murch made a uncommon sojourn to the director’s seat for this 1985 Wizard of Oz sequel, featuring Fairuza Balk (in her movie debut) arsenic Dorothy Gale and an aesthetic that perfectly marries whimsy with profoundly surreal nightmares. As 1 of the astir traumatizing films ever to beryllium ostensibly aimed astatine children, Return to Oz has rightfully claimed its spot successful the cult-movie pantheon.

The Wiz

What, you thought Wicked was the archetypal Wizard of Oz philharmonic to conquer Broadway and past deed the large screen? The superstar team-up of Diana Ross (as Dorothy) and Michael Jackson (as the Scarecrow) top-lined the formed of this 1978 release, which has arguably amended song-and-dance numbers than the archetypal Oz. Its popularity has endured; astir recently, a 2015 show (the superstar team-up successful this version: Mary J. Blige arsenic the Wicked Witch of the West; Queen Latifah arsenic the Wiz) aired connected NBC arsenic portion of web TV’s little but prolific signifier of unrecorded philharmonic broadcasts.

Tin Man

Tin Man was a three-part mini-series released successful 2007 connected what was past known arsenic the Sci-Fi Channel. It proved to beryllium an Emmy-winning deed for the web contempt diverging wildly from the basics of The Wizard of Oz (io9 described its instrumentality arsenic “kinky-gothy“). 500 Days of Summer-era Zooey Deschanel stars arsenic “DG,” a Kansas waitress who gets tangled up successful fantastical sci-fi adventures successful O.Z., abbreviated for “the Outer Zone,” which is populated with characters that kinda, sorta echo backmost to the classical story.

Emerald City

This TV bid ran for conscionable 1 play successful 2017 connected NBC. Emerald City had visually innovative manager Tarsem Singh (The Fall, The Cell) down the camera and starred a pre-Andor Adria Arjona arsenic Kansas caregiver Dorothy Gale, who’s picked up by a tornado and transplanted you-know-where. This mentation of the communicative is styled similar a acheronian fairy tale, implicit with a prophecy, and has immoderate intriguing formed members beyond Arjona, including Daredevil‘s Vincent D’Onofrio arsenic the Wizard.

The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz

Released successful 2005 done ABC’s The Wonderful World of Disney—Disney had acquired the Muppets conscionable a twelvemonth prior—The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz is often forgotten successful the Muppet filmography due to the fact that unfortunately, it’s not astir arsenic magical arsenic you’d privation it to be. That’s saying thing due to the fact that this mentation features Kermit the Frog arsenic the Scarecrow, Gonzo arsenic the Tin Man, Queen Latifah (a repetition Oz-adjacent formed member!) arsenic Auntie Em, and Miss Piggy arsenic all of the witches.

Under the Rainbow

This gleefully tasteless 1981 drama starring Chevy Chase and Carrie Fisher takes spot successful 1938, and was filmed astatine the existent Culver City edifice utilized for lodging the small radical who played Munchkins successful The Wizard of Oz. The crippled involves hijinks (Secret agents! Nazi spies! Assassins!) and mix-ups galore, arsenic good arsenic a pursuit crossed the acceptable of Gone With the Wind. Its mounting astir the fringes of The Wizard of Oz is an intriguing idea, but its depiction of small radical has unluckily not aged well—and frankly astir apt looked beauteous insensitive adjacent 40 years ago, considering the movie was nominated for a brace of Razzies. (Naturally, it present has a cult following.)

Wild astatine Heart and Lynch/Oz

David Lynch’s obsession with The Wizard of Oz shapes the communicative and visuals of his 1990 crime-drama romance Wild astatine Heart, starring Laura Dern and Nicolas Cage arsenic lovers connected the tally from her Wicked Witch-esque parent (played by Dern’s real-life mother, Diane Ladd). But it’s not conscionable Wild astatine Heart that reflects his fascination with the Victor Fleming classic. As Alexandre O. Philippe’s 2022 documentary Lynch/Oz explores, Hollywood’s ruby-red cinematic touchstone has consistently inspired Lynch passim his long, inventive career, often successful less-than-obvious ways.

Cursed Films: The Wizard of Oz

If you privation to perceive each the sordid legends and rumors astir the making of The Wizard of Oz gathered successful 1 spot (was determination really an on-set termination captured connected film?), caput to Shudder for the archetypal occurrence of the 2nd play of Cursed Films. Under the Rainbow director Steve Rash pops up arsenic 1 of the interviewees—as does the lad of Margaret Hamilton, Oz‘s everlastingly iconic Wicked Witch of the West.

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