Jon M.Chu Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Universal Pictures may have had some big guns to play with at CinemaCon with Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked” and David Leitch’s “The Fall Guy,” but its mini-major division, Focus Features, wanted a little bit of the spotlight.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Universal brought the first-ever footage of Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda in the movie version of “Wicked” to CinemaCon, the annual movie theater owners convention in Las Vegas. Erivo and Grande weren’t on hand to perform, but viewers were able to hear the captivating sounds of classic tunes like “Defying Gravity” and “Popular” in the background of the dazzling, magical footage. In the never-before-seen clip, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible works with Elphaba to help her control her powers. “Once you learn to harness your emotions, the sky is the limit,” Morrible tells her student. The featurette gives a sense of the sweeping, brightly lit set and includes scenes of Elphaba roaming the halls of Shiz University before meeting Glinda, who presents her new roommate with that iconic pointy hat. (It’s really, uh, sharp. Don’t you think?) Later in the trailer, Jeff Goldblum makes an appearance as the wonderful Wizard of Oz, Glinda transports by bubble and Elphaba sports her signature broomstick.

The rough and unfinished footage opened with a young green witch trying to master her magical training and being told by instructor Michelle Yeoh she needs to harness her emotions. The footage was mixed in with the filmmakers talking about how and why they made the movie.

Refresh for updates The studio that owns the highest grossing movie of the year so far, Universal with its billion bound Super Mario Bros Movie, brought the stars and filmmakers to CinemaCon. Could we expect anything less?

Ariana Grande was pictured in her Glinda attire for the first time as she filmed “Wicked” this week.

Ariana Grande is playing the role of Glinda in the upcoming Wicked movies and she beat out a lot of actresses for the coveted part.

Wicked director Jon M. Chu has reacted to criticism over the very dark, first look photos from the film – Just Jared Jr Brie Larson claims she doesn’t have a home or plan in new interview – Celebitchy Nicholas Hoult has never watched this project of his own – Popsugar Asher Angel approves of this fan-casted role for himself – Just Jared Jr

Angelique Jackson Grammy winner and Golden Globe and Emmy nominee Anthony Ramos is the latest star in talks to join “Twisters,” the sequel to the 1996 storm-chasing blockbuster. Ramos, a Grammy winner and Golden Globe and Emmy nominee, would join Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell in the film, directed by “Minari” helmer Lee Isaac Chung, from a script by “The Revenant” writer Mark L. Smith. “Twisters” is set to release on July 19, 2024. The film, from Universal Pictures, Warner Bros. and Amblin Entertainment, is described as a “new chapter” of the 1996 movie, which followed a team of storm chasers as they hunt down the most powerful tornado in decades. Details of who Ramos will play remain under wraps, as have all plot details to this point.

The very first look at the Wicked movie is here!! But only for those with stellar eyesight…

Ariana Grande as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba.Director Jon M. Chu shared the two stills from the upcoming two-part movies on Instagram.“You weren’t told the whole story.

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are getting into character on the set of “Wicked”.

There is still a long way to go until Wicked film hits theaters and director Jon M. Chu is teasing the musical dropping the first images of the film.

It’s the first look at Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in the Wicked movies!

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Good news! She’s dead. Director Jon M. Chu has revealed the first look at Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda in the movie version of “Wicked.” “You weren’t told the whole story. What happens when you veer off the Yellow Brick Road? FIRST LOOK of the #WickedMovie … currently in production in Oz,” Chu wrote on Instagram.A post shared by Jon M Chu (@jonmchu) A prequel to “The Wizard of Oz,” “Wicked” recounts everything that happened before Dorothy sauntered down that iconic yellow brick road — and tells the story of how a green-skinned woman named Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the West. Erivo and Grande are starring in the film as Elphaba and Glinda, who form an unlikely friendship that is torn apart by external forces. Additional cast members include Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible and Ethan Slater as Boq.

in the U.K., which is set to release its first part over Thanksgiving weekend in 2024. (“Wicked Part 2” will premiere in 2025 with a specific date to come).Meanwhile, Sanders and Jacobs are currently in post-production for the musical feature adaptation of “The Color Purple.”“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” itself is based on the Bible’s book of Genesis and originates from a cantata written for a school choir.

EXCLUSIVE: Wicked filmmaker Jon M. Chu will direct a new film version of the famed Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat for Amazon Studios.

EXCLUSIVE: The team at Artists First has continued to expand with the addition of Will Douglas as Talent Manager. The appointment follows Artists First’s promotion of Caroline Soss, as well as its hiring of Curtis Shaw Flagg for the same role.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Wicked,” the untold story of everything that happened before Dorothy dropped down in Oz, is poised to make Broadway history. When the hit musical plays its 7,486th performance on Tuesday, April 11, it’ll surpass Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Cats” to become the fourth-longest running production on the Great White Way. “Phantom of the Opera,” which is closing in April, remains the longest-running show on Broadway with 13,965 performances, followed by “Chicago” with 10,321 performances and “The Lion King” with 9,936 performances. “Wicked” will also celebrate its 20th anniversary this October. The show opened in 2003, led by Idina Menzel as Elphaba, Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda and Joel Grey as the Wizard. It won three Tony Awards, including best musical.

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are showing support for their Wicked co-star Michelle Yeoh!

Imagine Entertainment co-founders, Oscar winners and USC School of Cinematic Arts alums Brian Grazer and Ron Howard will deliver the school’s commencement address in May, the university said Thursday.

Studio executive Sherry Lansing, TriStar’s Dr. Jennifer Turner, Hallmark Media’s Wonya Lucas, Apple’s Rita Cooper Lee, and the documentary A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting will be among this year’s honorees of The African American Film Critics Association at the association’s 6th Annual AAFCA Special Achievement Awards Luncheon on Saturday, April 8 at the California Yacht Club in Marina Del Rey.

Anne Hathaway (Eileen) has signed on to star in a mysterious new film that David Robert Mitchell (It Follows, Under the Silver Lake) will direct for Warner Bros. Pictures, Bad Robot and Jackson Pictures.

Melissa Barrera is quite alright with In The Heights not being a major blockbuster.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Prepare for an earlier return to Oz. “Wicked,” Universal’s big-screen adaptation of the hit Broadway musical, is landing in theaters on Nov. 27, 2024 — a month ahead of schedule. The movie was initially scheduled to open on Dec. 25, but the studio felt it would be better positioned around Thanksgiving compared to Christmas. Though the release calendar will change over the next two years, there’s currently only a Disney Animation placeholder on the docket during Thanksgiving of 2024. By comparison, Christmastime is stacked with “Avatar 3” (a sequel to the third-highest grossing movie in history), as well as “Sonic the Hedgehog 3.”

Universal is moving the release of Wicked Part 1 to Wednesday, November 27, 2024 from its original date of December 25, 2024.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor Welcome to this week’s “Just for Variety.” Ever since I broke the news that is playing Madame Morrible in Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked” movies, she has been saying that the films will mark her singing debut. However, Yeoh’s biggest fans have posted videos on social media of her showing off her vocal chops while singing the theme song of her 1993 movie “Butterfly and Sword.” Yeoh laughed when I brought it up at the Mandarin Oriental-hosted dinner in honor of her Oscar nomination for “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” “That was so many years ago in Taiwan,” she said. At the time, she asked the song’s lyricist to make things simple for her. “I said to him, ‘I don’t sing, and I don’t speak Mandarin. Can you please not have many words?’” Yeoh recalled. “But then the first time he showed me, I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’”

Zach Galifianakis has been cast in Disney’s live-action “Lilo & Stitch” feature, TheWrap has confirmed. We’ve heard he will be playing Pleakley, the alien character originally voiced by Kevin McDonald and animated by Ruben A. Aquino.Dean Fleischer Camp, the Oscar-nominated director of last year’s “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On,” will be directing the new adaptation.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter A live-action adaptation of “How to Train Your Dragon” is soaring to theaters in 2025. Dean DeBlois, who wrote and directed the animated trilogy — 2010’s “How to Train Your Dragon,” 2014’s “How to Train Your Dragon 2” and 2019’s “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” — is returning to write and direct the newest entry in the franchise. It’s slated to release on March 14, 2025. The Oscar-nominated “How to Train Your Dragon” takes place in the mythical Viking village of Berk and follows the adventures of a misfit teen named Hiccup who befriends an injured dragon he calls Toothless. The fantasy series, backed by Universal and DreamWorks and based on the books by Cressida Cowell, has generated more than $1.6 billion worldwide. Their journeys have taken them beyond the big screen, spawning three TV series — “DreamWorks Dragons,” “Rescue Riders” and “The Nine Realms” — as well as theme park rides and the live show, “How to Train Your Dragon on Ice.”

Universal/DreamWorks Animation’s How to Trian Your Dragon will return to the big screen, but as a live-action feature adaptation with the franchise’s 3x Oscar nominated and Golden Globe winning filmmaker Dean DeBlois returning to write, direct and produce the newest entry.

EXCLUSIVE: ABC‘s upcoming freshman series The Company You Keep has added Sachin Bhatt (Queer As Folk) in a recurring role, Deadline hears. The series premieres on February 19.

Film Independent, the nonprofit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards, has selected 30 filmmakers for Project Involve 2023 and with a renewed partnership with LAIKA Studios, expanded the stop-motion animation track into a two-year program, selecting five filmmakers. 

Tale as old as time! Beauty and the Beast was a massive success upon its release in 1991 — and the voice cast featured some major Hollywood icons.

Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once) has joined Universal’s two-part film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical Wicked, Deadline can confirm. She’s set to star alongside previously announced cast members including Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jeff Goldbum, Jonathan Bailey and Ethan Slater.

Jeff Goldblum is in talks for a key role in Universal’s two-part film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical Wicked, Deadline can confirm. While sources tell Deadline that Goldblum’s deal is “not even close” to sealed, we understand that the actor is eyeing the role of The Wizard.

30th anniversary celebration special is rounding out its cast! Shania Twain, Martin Short and David Alan Grier have joined the star-studded ensemble for ABC's upcoming live-action/animated special honoring the iconic Disney film, set to air Thursday, Dec. 15.Short will take on the role of Lumiere, while Grier will portray Cogsworth. Twain will play Mrs.

previously announced, five-time Grammy and Oscar-winning singer-songwriter H.E.R. will portray Belle. Josh Groban — the Tony, Emmy and Grammy-nominated artist — will play the Beast, while Tony and Grammy nominee Joshua Henry has been tapped to play Gaston.