Is it just me, or is Wicked absolutely everywhere?
2024 was the year of Wicked, yet the film wouldn’t tell the full story until its 2025 sequel. The Wicked buzz started early and never stopped.
When the 96th Academy Awards rolled around, it wasn’t the past year’s winners making headlines, but the two stars of the most anticipated upcoming blockbuster: Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. Dressed in their iconic green and pink gowns — a colour-coded uniform that would define this two-year press run — the goal wasn’t just to create buzz for a film, but to lay the yellow brick road for a new marketing era.
Each year, the Oscars place the spotlight on the past, present and future of film. The decision to debut Wicked on the Academy stage was no accident. It marked the launch of what would become the most calculated and far-reaching marketing campaign in recent memory.
Strategic pairings followed throughout the year, subtle reminders of what was to come later that November. Whether they were appearing at the Met Gala or the Paris Olympics, wherever Erivo and Grande were spotted, Wicked hype followed before the official rollout truly began.
Pairing Erivo and Grande was a marketing dream. The two beloved performers are from very different backgrounds: a Broadway darling and pop music icon. Yet anywhere they went, their chemistry translated seamlessly and built a parasocial connection with audiences that made them feel like they were a part of the story.
But cameos and press stints were just the beginning. Quickly, every corner of consumer culture had turned pink and green, echoing the Barbie phenomenon of 2023. Wicked wasn’t just a movie release; it was an event designed to live in every feed and moment of pop culture. It was here that the Wicked hype machine was born.
Brand collaborations became as central as the film itself, from Wicked themed Crocs, REM beauty makeup collections just in time for the holidays, from pink and green Starbucks drinks and even the infamous “mystery color mac and cheese” from Walmart house brand Great Value. Anything that could be made Wicked themed was quickly given a Wicked-inspired coat of paint. These partnerships blurred the lines of what it means to be a global phenomenon in the 2020s. Nonetheless, consumers couldn’t get enough.
This year sees the return of that hype machine poised to be larger than ever, with more brand collaborations and double features set to break records and redefine the award season landscape.
While there will, no doubt, be countless new viral moments that the internet will take pride in holding space for, the push this year will be filled with more buzz than ever for the award season. Having Wicked: Part 1 nominated for 10 Oscars in 2025, its sequel Wicked: For Good is already stirring up that award season buzz.
Notably, Wicked: One Wonderful Night, a television special that aired on Nov. 6, showcased a live orchestra, singing, dancing and Broadway callbacks set to create new buzz and show off the unfiltered talent of both Erivo and Grande. This wasn’t just another press moment; it was cultural reinforcement — a chance to relive the magic of the past year and a glimpse at the final chapter set to release. Playing the award season long game, it helped that the performance was set in the iconic Dolby Theater — the chosen venue for the Academy Awards every year since 2002.
By the time Wicked: For Good begins its press run later this month, the hype machine will have proven to be well-oiled, with clips and videos flooding feeds from audience reactions and theatre seats full.
Wicked was already a cultural phenomenon before Hollywood got involved. Its film adaptation was destined to succeed, but the industrial scale of its marketing reveals something deeper about how we consume culture now.
Nostalgia has become the business plan. Studios aren’t just selling stories — they’re selling feelings, carefully repackaged and redistributed until nothing feels spontaneous anymore. Even in its oversaturation, the anticipation for Wicked remains unmatched.