When Jon M. Chu was a student at USC in the early 2000s, he took one course dissecting the world of George Lucas and another exploring films by Steven Spielberg. Over two decades later, Chu visited the campus to speak in a class inspired by his own film: “Transmedia Entertainment: The Wonderful World of Wicked.”
As Chu prepares to embark on his jam-packed press tour for “Wicked: For Good,” he began his media circuit by stopping by professor Mary McNamara’s class on Oct. 20. With just under a month until the sequel’s release, Chu sat down to talk with students about how USC impacted his journey, his favorite moments from creating the “Wicked” world and the pressure of working on a sequel movie musical.
“I wanted us to have this epic relationship with these girls [Glinda and Elphaba],” Chu said. “I wanted to feel like a friend that you didn’t want to say goodbye to, but you had to. I wanted to feel mourning, but also stepping into the beautiful unknown, this adventure that was ahead for both of you. I wanted to have that feeling, so I’m proud that that feeling retains.”
Chu graduated in 2003 from the USC School of Cinematic Arts, where he won the Kodak Student Filmmaker Award, the Jack Nicholson Award for directing and the Anti-Defamation League’s Dore Schary Award. Now a recipient of the National Board of Review Award for Best Director, Chu returned to campus to speak in McNamara’s class, which has hosted the crew members and creatives who helped bring the Land of Oz to life.
“I like that you’re meeting all these [crew members] because this is a highly technical movie, and yet when you watch it, you’re not supposed to see any of that technical part of it,” Chu said. “Every detail has to be tailored to each other.”
“Every detail has to be tailored to each other.”
— Jon M. Chu
“Wicked” has been a nearly five-year journey for Chu, who signed on to work on the films in 2021 (Chu shared he’s had three children since joining the project). With years of script analysis, production design and nine months of rehearsal for their 22 songs, Chu discussed how small details are necessary to build “Wicked’s” cinematic world.
“You can’t have the honey brick road. It has to be yellow, and it can’t be [a] neon yellow brick road. We spent months deciding what yellow that is,” Chu said. “Even though everyone’s monitor is different, you gotta adjust every piece of it. And that drove me crazy.”
This pressure wasn’t misplaced. In addition to the $455.8 million Forbes reported Universal Pictures spent on the “Wicked” movies, Chu explained that if these films didn’t succeed, he feared the movie musical genre would become extinct.
“If this doesn’t work, movie musicals are dead for a while because ‘Cats’ had already been bet on and [so was] ‘West Side Story,’” Chu said. “We had to hit it for all of musical theater, and you just have no choice. You just go. This is the Olympics of movies. Let’s freaking go.”
Chu’s bet is paying off. Box Office Mojo reported that the first film grossed over $750 million worldwide. “Wicked: Part One” was met with critical acclaim, garnering over 320 award nominations. For Chu, one of the most special parts of this five-year project was seeing the reception to “Wicked” at the Academy Awards.
“I snuck into the Academy Awards when it was here at the Shrine Auditorium…My dance company performed at the Academy Awards in 2014, so I got a seat, but it was in the way, way back: the last seat, the last row. And so, the first time I was really officially invited was this one. And my movie was nominated 10 times,” Chu said. “Everyone wants to talk to me about ‘Wicked.’ It just felt like I was so comfortable, and this was our show, and [it] didn’t matter if anyone won any awards at night.”
Reflecting on his most pivotal moments as a filmmaker, Chu harkened back to when he was directing his 480 production workshop short film. After his first weekend of shooting, the 9/11 terrorist attack occurred. Chu began feeling like there was no point in working on an entertainment project until Professor Brenda Goodman was able to guide him.
“She’s like, ‘This is exactly when it matters. Because people need art. They need stories to help, either to show hope or to help guide us through this time. Because everyone’s lost right now, and you need to finish this,’” Chu explained.
For Robby Harrington, a junior majoring in themed entertainment who’s taking McNamara’s class, the heart and meaning of the “Wicked” story is why he appreciates the franchise so much.
“‘Wicked’ is a story that relates so much to what’s happening in today’s times,” Harrington said. “From every single interview that we’ve had in class, it seems to me that every single person poured their heart and soul into this project…It didn’t feel like it was a commercial thing. It didn’t feel like they were forced to do it. It felt like a genuine passion project.”
During his two-hour visit, Chu provided the class with several tidbits of advice. However, he left the students with a poignant reminder that crafting a thematic world like Oz is an art that young creatives can’t take for granted.
“No one deserves to get a movie. This is a marketplace. No one is owed a movie. Someone’s putting millions of dollars into you; they have to know that they’re going to get their money back or that they’re trusting the right person. You do have to prove yourself. This is a craft,” Chu said. “If I can give you real advice, you have to fight for it. It’s your job to be undeniable.”