Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige Cast in NBC's The Wiz
Follow the yellow brick road! Queen Latifah and Mary J. Blige have joined the cast of NBC’s revival of Broadway hit The Wiz, adapted from Frank L. Baum’s classic book The Wizard of Oz. Latifah, who appeared in Chicago and Hairspray, will play the Wiz, while Grammy winner Blige will take on the role of Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West, in the live television production, set to air on Dec. 3.
Sources tell Us Weekly that Beyonce is also in talks to play Glinda the Good Witch. As for Dorothy, NBC is looking to cast an unknown teenage girl. As previously announced, Stephanie Mills will play Auntie Em.
The Wiz Live! follows executive producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron’s musical telecasts The Sound of Music Live! and Peter Pan Live! and will reunite Latifah with the producers, who also worked with the star in Hairspray and Steel Magnolias.
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“We are so happy reuniting with Latifah,” Zadan and Meron told Entertainment Weekly. “We’ve been friends for a long time and we’ve had quite a lot of success together. To see her play the iconic role of the Wiz and make it her own is going to be one of the joys of producing this event.”
Tell Us: Are you excited for The Wiz Live!?
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