"Even on an average day at Universal, you're likely to pass by the Bates Motel, the stand-in for a certain time-traveling DeLorean, and a tram overflowing with tourists. It's a semi-surreal environment where one learns to expect the unexpected. But Chu was nevertheless stunned when he ran into Steven Spielbergand the fabled director said he wanted to screen Wicked with him."
"I want you to be sitting right next to me and I want to see it in Dolby Atmos, Chu remembers him saying. The man who directed Jaws and Jurassic Park isn't exactly someone you say no to. So Chu dutifully arranged to show his movie adaptation of the acclaimed Broadway musical to his childhood idol. They ended up talking for nearly an hour afterward, with Spielberg asking endless questions about how Chu had pulled off certain shots and effects."
"One year later and Chu is in a familiar spot: He's putting the finishing touches on the sequel, Wicked: For Good, which hits theaters November 21. (If you're unfamiliar, Wicked is a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, reframing L. Frank Baum's story to show the Wicked Witch of the West's point of view.) The forty-five-year-old director is talking to me over Zoom from a set."
Jon M. Chu unexpectedly encountered Steven Spielberg on the Universal Studios lot and arranged a private screening of Wicked in Dolby Atmos at Spielberg's request. Spielberg watched the film and then spent nearly an hour asking detailed questions about shots and effects. Chu found the attention from a filmmaking legend both surprising and affirming. The first Wicked earned critical praise and $756 million globally. Chu is finishing the sequel, Wicked: For Good, scheduled for release on November 21. Wicked functions as a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, reframing L. Frank Baum's story from the Wicked Witch of the West's perspective. Chu, forty-five, balanced promotion with directing a commercial while on set.
Read at www.esquire.com
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