How Do You Build a Real-Life Land of Oz? Go Behind the Scenes of Wicked (WATCH)

Sometimes, screens made of blue and green just won't cut it. Sometimes, the old ways are better.

Upon setting out to adapt the Tony Award-winning musical Wicked for the big screen (the first part releases in November), director Jon M. Chu knew he couldn't just rely on digital effects. Wanting to capture the handmade quality on display in The Wizard of Oz, the filmmaker and his production team went the extra mile, constructing lavish sets and even planting an entire field of tulips.

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"We knew that we wanted Wicked to be immersive," Chu (known for helming Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights) explains in the new behind-the-scenes video below. "What does it feel like to be in Oz? To feel it in your fingertips? If you want to be inside that world, you gotta build it." 

That philosophy rang true for every iconic location — from the Emerald City to Munchkinland — and only served to enhance the actors' performances. "To see all that detail... all of it adds to the things that you can imagine," notes Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba (aka the shunned young woman destined to one day become the Wicked Witch of the West). "It's wonderful to be able to touch this space."

"A lot of it is real, physical, tangible sets," echoes co-star Ariana Grande (stepping into the bubble of Glinda the Good).

Go Behind the Construction of Oz in New Wicked Featurette

What Is Wicked About?

Based on the 1995 novel and acclaimed Broadway musical of the same name, Wicked presents a unique interpretation of The Wizard of Oz story most fans think they know. What if the broom-riding spell-caster feared throughout Oz wasn't all that wicked? What if she was merely painted that way by someone in a place of authority? Someone great and powerful, perhaps? 

The official synopsis is as follows:

Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, stars Emmy, Grammy and Tony winning powerhouse Cynthia Erivo (Harriet, Broadway’s The Color Purple) as Elphaba, a young woman, misunderstood because of her unusual green skin, who has yet to discover her true power, and Grammy-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and global superstar Ariana Grande as Glinda, a popular young woman, gilded by privilege and ambition, who has yet to discover her true heart.

RELATED: Return to Oz With the Fantastical First Look at Wicked, Starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande

Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once), Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic World Dominion), Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Ethan Slater (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live), Bronwyn James (Lockwood & Co.), Keala Settle (The Greatest Showman), Colin Michael Carmichael (Black Mirror), and relative newcomers Marissa Bode and Aaron Teoh round out the cast.