The massive commercial success of Universal Pictures’ 2024 musical film Wicked will surely go down in history as one of the biggest marketing campaigns for a film franchise in modern Hollywood. Directed by Jon M. Chu, the highly popular film has grossed $697.6 million worldwide as of Jan. 12, with only an estimated budget of USD 145 million to begin with.
From large, eye-catching brand partnerships with Target to pink and green Starbucks cups, Wicked has spread its name onto many essential products and services across North America—a tactic that will eventually aid in promoting its second film, Wicked: For Good.
The advertising campaign for Wicked began with a minute-long teaser trailer released on Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024. With roughly 123.7 million football fans watching, it aired as a commercial during the 2024 Super Bowl. The teaser trailer included cameos of all the primary cast members, such as pop star Ariana Grande and Broadway’s Cynthia Erivo. Beyond that, the commercial was just a few shots and spoken dialogue words showcasing its high-quality cinematography.
Then, in the months leading up to Nov. 25–– the day Wicked was released in theatres––a wide variety of strange Wicked-related products hit store shelves. At first, the products seemed light-hearted and fun, like the Betty Crocker Wicked-themed cupcakes that went viral on TikTok. Promising a mystery batter colour of either pink or green, fans of the Broadway musical flocked to the stores to participate in baking the sweet treat. After that, Wicked began spreading to more companies, targeting North America’s consumerist clientele to advertise their film.
In 2024, Wicked established 70+ brand partnerships to advertise their movie. They partnered with Starbucks, Indigo, Roots, H&M, Lego, Crocs, and The Gap––to name a few. Almost all major brands today sell some kind of Wicked product, including notebooks, perfumes, makeup sets, pens, backpacks, water bottles, and even mystery mac and cheese packs. For months, the things you regularly see on shelves have slowly been re-packaged in pink and green. When it comes to marketing, Wicked seems to have the strategy of ‘go big or go home.’
The Wicked movie made a name for itself on social media by being trendy, desirable, and loud in a world of constant consumerism. As November approached, they began releasing clips and snippets of the movie online to excite fans for its release. These teaser trailers, snippets, and pre-planned “leaks” created trending Wicked TikTok sounds, such as Elphaba and Glinda’s iconic “You’re green! – I am” audio from the teaser and Jonathan Bailey’s lively rendition of Dancing Through Life.
Then, when critics started to poke fun at the film and its actors on social media, Wicked utilized that hatred to help further advertise its brand. Grande and Erivo were quick to embrace the humour of their emotional friendship, leading to the iconic trend of ‘holding space for defying gravity,’ which still exists today. Wicked has found a way to make bad press good by treating any recognition as valuable to its brand.
The act of ‘holding space for the lyrics of defying gravity’ has become so popular that various influencers and companies online have gone viral with their own concepts of the trend. These TikTok videos can get millions of views, with roughly 105.4k videos posted under the “Defying Gravity” audio on the app.. Here at Her Campus U Vic, we even got our small dose of fame when a Wicked TikTok we made got liked by Wicked actress Cynthia Erivo on the @hercampus Instagram. At the moment, it has 1.1 million views and counting!
After the movie’s release, the quality of the singing, dancing, and cinematic visuals was enough to launch the musical film into an even more commercial success. Iconic dance numbers became TikTok trends online, cosplayers were quick to recreate incredible costumes, and theorists began piecing together predictions for the second film––a year before its release. It was so successful that the film received a Golden Globe for cinematic and box office achievement and is favoured for the 2025 Oscar nominations.
From the beginning of its marketing campaign, Wicked has set out to achieve one goal: to reach as many people as possible. They have advertised their movie in any way they could, making it more memorable because of its popularity. Partnering with multiple brands is a brilliant marketing plan because it purposefully targets human nostalgia. In a year when the advertising for Wicked: For Good begins, we, as consumers, will start to feel nostalgic for the products and services we bought in the past. The familiar sight of the Wicked-themed mug at Walmart will remind us of the first movie and its impact, and we will feel compelled to buy it.
On social media, old trends will come back naturally without much pushback from users. Enough time will have passed for the old bits to become funny again, allowing for more memes and trends to blossom out of the existing ones. When Wicked: For Good is released, North America will feel like we’re in a time capsule, living the same life we had a year prior. That nostalgic, emotional feeling will sell, and as consumers, we will all be blind to the magic marketing plan laid before us. We’re already all wrapped up in it, so there’s no choice but to sit back and enjoy the ride!