Exposed: The story behind Salma Hayek’s failed Wicked spin-off that was doomed to fail

Salma Hayek has wished Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo “congratulations” for the worldwide phenomenon that is Wicked despite her earlier spin-off TV show that struggled from the moment it was announced.

The Wizard of Oz was written over a century ago, and yet, it has spiralled into countless TV shows, films, and stage musicals. With reviews that defy gravity and an awe-inspiring 90 per cent Rotten Tomatoes score, Wicked is by far the most successful adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s original work. It’s depressing to know he’ll never experience the Wicked Witch of the West’s glow-up.

Salma Hayek signed on to do a Wicked miniseries in 2011

If you’ve been following Wicked for some time you’ll know that it’s been almost a decade since the film was first announced in 2016. Countless creatives had tried to spearhead a Wicked-inspired project before that, with Salma Hayek taking her stab in 2011.

This story starts in 2009 when Gregory Maguire, the genius behind the Wicked book, sold the rights to ABC with the intention of them producing a “non-musical adaptation” of the novel. Its first mistake was undoubtedly omitting the songs the stage musical had become known for.

In 2011, Salma Hayek and her Ventanarosa Productions partner Jose Tamez were announced as executive producers, with Band of Brothers’ Erik Jendressen signing on to write it. It was marketed as an eight-part miniseries, another obvious mistake when you consider the sheer length of Director Jon Chu’s two-part movie. The project failed to get off the ground, cast actors, or even decide on a director.

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A few years later when whispers of a Wicked film began to circulate, with actors like Lea Michele and Amy Adams fronting the project, Salma’s miniseries was ultimately abandoned. Though I’ll never turn away from more Wicked content, we might be best counting ourselves lucky that this trainwreck failed to take off.

Only recently has Gregory Maquire commented on the failed series, replying to TVLine’s inquiry with an emoji shrug and arguing that “while the rights to such a non-musical filmed presentation are still owned by a separate entity, there has been no apparent movement to use those rights by said entity.”

She’s a good sport

Despite the fact her own Wicked project failed to lift off on its broom, Salma Hayek congratulated both Cynthia and Ariana for their tremendous work as she attended the American premiere of the film.

Sharing a picture alongside Ariana and an adorable video of her and Cynthia embracing, Salma captioned the post: “Congratulations @arianagrande, @cynthiaerivo, and the entire Wicked team for the magic you’ve brought to our screens!”

Featured Image credit: Instagram/Salma Hayek & Universal Pictures