Video: John Powell Shares How He Approached WICKED Movie Score

Though John Powell co-wrote the musical underscoring for the Wicked movie, his experience with the material doesn't go back all that far. 

"My first real involvement with Wicked was saying to Stephen Schwartz, 'I'm really sorry but I haven't seen the show,'" the film composer reveals in a new video. Being an outsider in the world of Oz was his "job," Powell explains and allowed him to approach the film as an audience member, taking in the story for the first time. 

In addition to Schwartz's existing musical material, Powell wrote some new themes for the film, including the "Dark Magic" theme which is heard when Elphaba is seen using her powers for the first time. "I needed something that would follow her all the way through in these moments," says Powell. Another is the "Green Toy" motif, which plays when Elphaba is shown the miniature figure of herself by the Wizard. Watch Powell and director Jon M. Chu discuss the film score in the new video now. The score itself is available to stream here.

Powell's previous scoring credits include Solo: A Star Wars Story, the Bourne films, Don't Worry Darling, and the How to Train Your Dragon franchise.

The Wicked film adaptation stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, Ariana Grande as Glinda, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Jeff Goldblum as The Wizard, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Ethan Slater as Boq, and Marissa Bode as Nessarose. The first part was released on November 22, 2024, with Wicked: For Good hitting theaters on November 21, 2025.