While fans eagerly anticipate the release of Wicked this November, Universal Pictures is already making a change to the release date for Wicked Part Two. Thankfully, it isn’t a major one. Wicked, which Universal is notably not marketing as Wicked Part One, shows the untold story of the Wicked Witch of the West, here reimagined as a tragic figure named Elphaba. The movie will adapt Act 1 of the Broadway stage play, which centers on Elphaba (Cynthia Ervino) and her rivalry-turned-friendship with Glinda (Ariana Grande). Universal had already announced that Wicked would be split into two parts and released in back-to-back years.
Wicked Part Two will now be arriving in theaters a week earlier than expected. According to Variety, Universal Pictures has set the film for release on November 21, 2025. This is five days before its initial release date of November 26, 2025, which would have been the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It was originally set to open on the same day as Zootopia 2, but now the films will avoid a direct fight at the box office over the Thanksgiving holiday, and Wicked Part Two will have a head start.
Wicked Backs Down From Disney Sequels Twice
Wicked Part Two is moving its release date to avoid Zootopia 2, which is very similar to what happened with Wicked this year. Wicked was originally set to open in theaters on November 27, 2024, and go head-to-head with Moana 2 over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Yet following the massive opening weekend of Inside Out 2, Universal Pictures decided to adjust their release schedule and move Wicked back one weekend to November 22, 2024. While Wicked will go head-to-head with Gladiator II, the studio sees it as having a better shot than against a Disney sequel to a beloved animated movie.
The same is now happening with Wicked Part Two. Film series like Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, and Twilight all took advantage of the Friday before the Thanksgiving holiday to reap box office glory, so it is in the interest of both Wicked and Wicked Part Two to do the same. The only movies scheduled for November 2025 aside from Wicked Part Two and Zootopia 2 are Marvel Studios’ Blade on November 7 (which might get pulled, since the reboot still doesn’t have a director), and Lionsgate’s Now You See Me 3 on November 14. That could certainly change, but for now, Wicked Part Two is easily one of the biggest movies of the 2025 holiday season.
