Ethan Slater cast in 'Wicked' alongside Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo

Broadway star Ethan Slater is roped in to lead upcoming musical film Wicked opposite Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo

Ethan Slater, who received a Tony nomination for SpongeBob SquarePants: The Musical, has been roped in to play Boq in Universal’s big-screen adaptation of Wicked.

Variety reported on December 8, Slater is joining the previously announced cast of Ariana Grande as Glinda, Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, and Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero. Jeff Goldblum is also in talks to star in the movie.

Jon M. Chu serves as the director of Wicked, which is a prequel to The Wizard of Oz.

The movie is based on a screenplay by the musical’s book writer Winnie Holzman and Oscar-winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz, who adapted Gregory Maguire’s bestselling novel Wicked for the stage musical, cited from Variety.

The two-part film adaptation is scheduled for release separately on Christmas 2024 and 2025.