With Wicked: For Good being released in theaters on Nov. 21, fans are diving back into the world of Oz and piecing together how the 1939 classic film The Wizard of Oz ends, and how it connects to its modern prequel. Since Wicked retells the story from the witches’ point of view, the two films overlap in some pretty big ways. And because the prequel fills in so many moments happening just out of Dorothy’s sight, remembering how the original story wraps up makes a huge difference. So before you sit down for Wicked: For Good, here’s a quick refresher of how The Wizard of Oz ends — with no For Good spoilers to be found.
The original Wizard Of Oz film ends with Dorothy completing her journey in Oz. At first, Dorothy believes she needs the Wizard to help her leave, but then she finds out that the Wizard has left Oz without her. She’s upset, but then Glinda arrives and tells her the truth about how to get back home to her family in Kansas. After traveling the yellow brick road, making friends along the way, and meeting the Wizard, she learns from Glinda that she had the power to return home the entire time. With some encouragement from Glinda, Dorothy clicks her red heels together, repeats the phrase “There’s no place like home,” and wakes up back in her own bed.Â
Dorothy’s journey wouldn’t be the same without the Tin Man, Scarecrow, and Cowardly Lion — the friends she made along the way who helped her navigate Oz. Like Dorothy, these three wanted to meet the Wizard to ask for what they thought they were lacking — a heart, a brain, and courage. By the end of the film, each of them realizes what they were searching for had been inside them all along. These characters are a huge part of the 1939 classic, and their transformations become even more interesting when viewed alongside Wicked — but don’t worry, I won’t give anything away.
This is where Wicked comes in. The prequel doesn’t rewrite Dorothy’s story, but it fills in the parts she never saw. While the Wizard of Oz focuses on Dorothy, Wicked shows us the behind the scenes of what is going on in the magical land of Oz, before (and after) a tornado dropped a house in the middle of it. Characters who seem one dimensional in the original film — like Glinda and the Wicked Witch — are given a deep and emotional backstory. It gives us the complex stories behind the Ozians that we never saw in The Wizard of Oz.Â
Another overlap between the two films are the flying monkeys. In The Wizard of Oz, the flying monkeys are portrayed as the Wicked Witch’s evil, frightening henchmen. Wicked doesn’t change that, but it gives more context as to how they fit into the bigger story of what is happening in Oz. It offers a deeper meaning behind their presence, without altering what Dorothy was experiencing.Â
Wicked actually occurs alongside key moments from Dorothy’s journey in Oz, so knowing how the original film concludes will add more depth to the second part of Wicked without spoiling anything. These two films highlight how much perspective matters when telling a story. Dorothy may have been the hero in the 1939 film, but Wicked reveals how much was happening beyond her story, and who the real hero was in the end. Together, the two films create a fuller, more interconnected picture of Oz — one that’s equally magical and messy.Â