Follow the dollar bill road for your chance to meet the Wonderful Wizard of Capitalism. No one will mourn Wicked as their “unlimited” marketing strategies never give us the chance to.
Universal has partnered with over 400 brands to ensure that Wicked is seen everywhere, according to variety.com. From Elphaba and Glinda-inspired Starbucks drinks to illuminating the Empire State Building with pink and green lights, Universal has made the movie unavoidable. But what is Wicked actually about? Sure, it’s the prequel to The Wizard of Oz, but this superfluous marketing has fogged the true message of the film.
The movie’s brand promotes being an “individual,” yet ironically its marketing promotes making everyone the same. It’s important to look beyond the frenzy of pink and green merchandise to understand how this multi-million dollar marketing scheme is actually drawing from themes of the movie.
To prove you are a non-conformist like Elphaba, you don’t need your own opinions, interests or style. Just grab your OPI Wicked nail polish and Aerie sweatshirt and bam: you earned the right to call yourself an individual.
This may seem harmless, but other movies have followed suit, capitalizing on consumerism rather than empowerment and thematic messages. Although the 2024 film adaptation of It Ends With Us is a commentary on domestic violence, lead actress Blake Lively used her platform to promote her haircare line so that girls could have the same hairstyles as the resilient Lily Bloom. Because of this, some viewers didn’t know they were going to see a movie about domestic violence, thinking it was just another cheesy rom-com.
Colleen Hoover, author of It Ends With Us, created a nail polish set to go along with the color palette of the movie. Instead of celebrating the strength of women like Bloom, Hoover created cheap merchandise to target a large audience of women and exploit the pain of domestic violence survivors.
Another recent trend in marketing strategies has been advertising the movie theater experience rather than the film itself. Universal’s Chief of Marketing Michael Moses said to Variety, “[Barbie] also was centered on and fueled by women. I get frustrated sometimes that our industry has to relearn that lesson time and again: there are enough women in the world. If you make something that is truly an event for them, they will show up.”
Before movies like Wicked, male audiences were targeted by multi-part sagas like Avengers and Star Wars. But executives like Moses have figured out that homing in on a selective audience, like female theatergoers, is an effective strategy, because it creates a community of women that can all relate to the themes of the movie. However, when marketing only focuses on female-dominated brands like Ulta Beauty and Vera Bradley, they diminish the strength of this community by attracting shallow consumers instead of loyal fans.
It’s true that we live in a capitalistic society, but instead of product-based marketing, Hollywood executives should encourage consumers to buy into the themes of the movie. Promote the strength of domestic violence survivors through advocacy. Promote individuality through making a unique brand that is not entirely revolving around consumerism. Once this is done, the intent of the movie can be carried out to its fullest extent with lasting impacts.
As Wicked’s popularity continues to grow, and we look ahead to part two’s release in 2025, consumers must remember that while marketing can be fun, viewers should not have to participate in consumerism in order to enjoy this or any movie.
Read our review of Wicked by Libby Verga and Astrid Wunderle here.