Wicked's Villain Twist Explained: Why That Character Works With The Wizard (2024)

Warning! This article contains spoilers for Wicked: Part 1.

Wicked: Part 1's ending includes a big villain twist, revealing that a previously benevolent character has secretly been working for The Wizard of Oz the entire time. The ending of Wicked: Part 1 sees the film's two leads, Elphaba and Galinda, travel to the Emerald City for a meeting with the fabled Wizard. Some differences between the Wicked movie and musical are found here, from the exploration of the Wizard's origins in Oz to the cameos of Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, the original actresses from the Broadway play on which Wicked is based.

Shortly before Wicked's fantastic soundtrack closes out with the goosebump-inducing "Defying Gravity," the film reveals plenty of twists and turns that push Elphaba and the newly-named Glinda further down the path of becoming the Wicked Witch of the West and the Good Witch of the North respectively. These twists surround the manipulations that are further explored in The Wizard of Oz's ending, with the titular character's true nature being uncovered. Moreover, The Wizard of Oz is revealed to have a helper, a character who appears throughout Wicked: Part 1 as a seemingly benevolent helper.

Wicked's Ending Confirms Madame Morrible Is A Villain

Elphaba's Magic Teacher Is Working With The Wizard

The character in question is Madame Morrible, played by Michelle Yeoh in Wicked's ensemble cast. Morrible is introduced early in the film, taking the blame for one of Elphaba's inadvertent magical outbursts. Morrible takes a distinct liking to Elphaba, stating that she will take her as her student, which is a rare commodity at Shiz University. Throughout the film, Morrible helps Elphaba unlock her potential in a bid to get the latter an audience with The Wizard of Oz.

Initially, all of these helpful acts seem to be exactly as they are presented. However, once Elphaba reaches the Emerald City and The Wizard of Oz, Morrible reveals her true intentions. Morrible never desired to see Elphaba fulfill her potential and instead has been grooming her, building up the latter's powers so that she can carry out spells that will solidify The Wizard of Oz's power over his eponymous land. These revelations drive Elphaba away from the Emerald City, leading Morrible to reinforce her villainy by painting her former student as the Wicked Witch of the West.

Why Madame Morrible Is Working With The Wizard In Wicked

What Is Madame Morrible's Goal?

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The true motivations of Madame Morrible will undoubtedly be explored further in Wicked: Part 2's story, yet Wicked: Part 1 provides some insight into why she was working with the Wizard. As was explored in The Wizard of Oz, the titular character is a fraud who uses his skills as a conman and a magician to trick the people of Oz into believing he is an all-powerful deity. Wicked's status as a prequel means the Wizard is still trying to iron out the details of this trickery in order to establish his secure dominance over Oz.

To do so, the Wizard begins subjugating the realm's talking animals and later states that the best way to bring people together is to give them a good enemy. This ties into the reasoning behind framing Elphaba for the subjugation of the talking animals of Oz, as it will consolidate the Wizard's rule given his opposition to this new enemy. Where Madame Morrible is concerned, she and the Wizard have a close friendship, and she is working with him for power. Similarly, it is hinted that Morrible does not like talking animals, further explaining her villainous motivations.

How Wicked's Morrible Villain Twist Compares To The Book & Musical

Wicked is based on the musical of the same name, which in turn was based on a book from 1995, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. Regarding how the film translates both aspects of the source material, Madame Morrible's villain twist differs. In the original book, Madame Morrible is outright confirmed as a villain, something that remains consistent in Wicked : Part 1.

However, the musical is less overt about Morrible's villainy. Rather than Morrible being manipulative and conniving as she is in the book and Wicked: Part 1, the story of the musical only provides hints at Morrible's ulterior motives. While she is eventually confirmed as a villain, her fate is different in the book and the musical, which audiences will have to wait to see play out when Wicked: Part 2 releases in theaters on November 21, 2025.

What Madame Morrible's Villain Twist Means For Wicked 2

Finally, Madame Morrible's villain twist in Wicked: Part 1 not only gives the film a solid villain for its final act but provides the same for Wicked: Part 2. As alluded to, Wicked is a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, meaning the titular character of the latter cannot be the final villain for Glinda and Elphaba to overcome in Wicked: Part 2, as his ending comes via Dorothy's eventual story. Thanks to Madame Morrible, however, Wicked: Part 2 has a central villain for the story to center around.

With Elphaba on the run and Glinda seemingly being taken under Morrible's wing at the end of Wicked: Part 1, the second film positions Morrible as an interesting figure. Not only will she likely be a source of Elphaba's anger and rebellion, but she could also serve as a way to drive a bigger wedge between Elphaba and Glinda. This means that, while The Wizard of Oz will still have a presence in Wicked: Part 2, the main villain of Wicked: Part 1's sequel will be Madame Morrible, stemming from the film's villain twist and aligning with Morrible's character arc from the Broadway musical.

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Wicked

PG

Wicked adapts the Broadway musical into a two-part film, following the unlikely friendship between Elphaba, born with green skin, and Glinda, a popular aristocrat, in the Land of Oz. As they navigate their contrasting paths, they evolve into Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.

Director

Jon M. Chu

Release Date

November 22, 2024

Writers

Gregory Maguire , Winnie Holzman , Dana Fox , L. Frank Baum

Cast

Cynthia Erivo , Ariana Grande , Michelle Yeoh , Jeff Goldblum , Jonathan Bailey , Ethan Slater , Marissa Bode , Bowen Yang , Bronwyn James , Keala Settle , Peter Dinklage , Aaron Teoh , Grecia De la Paz , Colin Michael Carmichael , Adam James , Andy Nyman , Courtney Mae-Briggs , Sharon D. Clarke , Jenna Boyd

Runtime

160 Minutes