- Title: Actor Jonathan Bailey comes full circle with "Wicked"
- Date: 22nd November 2024
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (FILE - MARCH 22, 2022) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF BAILEY POSING FOR PHOTOS AT WORLD PREMIERE OF "BRIDGERTON SEASON 2" BAILEY POSING WITH ACTORS CHARITHRA CHANDRAN (SCREEN LEFT) AND SIMONE ASHLEY SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA (FILE - NOVEMBER 3, 2024) (REUTERS) ACTORS CYNTHIA ERIVO (SCREEN LEFT) AND ARIANA GRANDE ON RED CARPET AT "WICKED" AUSTRALIA PREMIERE BAILEY HUGGING ACTOR JEFF GOLDBLUM ON RED CARPET FAN HOLDING SIGN READING (English) "JOHNNY+ME=OZDUST BALLROOM?" BAILEY ON RED CARPET LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (FILE - NOVEMBER 16, 2023) (REUTERS) BAILEY POSING FOR PHOTOS ON GQ GALA RED CARPET NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (FILE - MAY 6, 2024) (REUTERS) BAILEY POSING ON MET GALA RED CARPET
- Embargoed: 6th December 2024 12:41
- Keywords: Jonathan Bailey Wicked Wicked film Wicked movie
- Location: VARIOUS
- City: VARIOUS
- Country: UK
- Topics: Arts/Culture/Entertainment,Europe,Film
- Reuters ID: LVA006156521112024RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Taking on the role of Fiyero, a Winkie country prince, in the musical movie "Wicked" allowed British actor Jonathan Bailey to return to his roots.
Bailey, who gained global fame with the hit Netflix series "Bridgerton", took ballet lessons as a youngster and began his career as a child actor in theatre productions.
"(The role) reminded me of two things in the sort of purest version of who I am. I loved dancing and I loved singing. And I danced from the age of four and five, six, and I stopped when I was 11. And so to be able to return back to that, I think it was watching the film made me realize just how much I was inspired by musicals, movie musicals and cinema, but also dancing and singing. And it's all sort of feels full circle," he said in an interview.
Bailey was filming "Fellow Travelers" in Toronto and "Bridgerton" in London when rehearsals for "Wicked" begun and had to get creative to prepare for the film's elaborate song-and-dance sequences. This meant practising his steps on a long haul flight and doing high leg kicks while eating his meals, the actor, 36, said.
"Wicked" is based on Stephen Schwartz's musical of the same name, which itself is an adaptation of the 1995 book by Gregory Maguire, and tells the story of a misunderstood, green-skinned young woman Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) who goes on to become the Wicked Witch of the West from the classic children's novel "The Wizard of Oz."
Pop star Ariana Grande plays the privileged and popular Glinda who meets Elphaba at Shiz University, where they also befriend Bailey's Fiyero.
Bailey said his "Bridgerton" experience helped him approach the highly-anticipated production and the film's global premiere tour that kicked off in Australia at the start of November and concluded in London on Monday (November 18).
"I feel like I have had good training for it," he said. "I think 'Bridgerton' was an adaptation that sort of was so successful and brilliant and genius and many people loved the books, but I just feel like 'Wicked' is so, like, the imagery in 'Wicked' is so iconic, so it is slightly different. It's exciting to share another fandom."
Bailey said was drawn to the role of Fiyero for the character's complexity.
"His story arc is really sort of vast and he's literally changed by the end of the second film. So yeah, to dive in and to not only do the singing and the dancing, but to try meticulously work out with Jon M. Chu exactly what's going on, at which moments," he said.
"Wicked" also came with new skills and new ambitions, Bailey said.
"I can open books with my toes now, so that's good," he said.
"Looking at the dancers, I was like, oh my gosh, there's so much, I just want to, that's going to be my old age. I want to be doing slow dances on a pagoda by the sea, New dreams. Dream unlocked."
The first chapter of the two-part "Wicked" film series is out in UK and US cinemas on Friday (November 22).
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