Ethan Slater to Play Boq in Wicked Movie

Ethan Slater will play the role of Boq in the two-part film adaptation of the Broadway musical Wicked. The casting was first reported by Variety.

Slater is best known for his performance of the title role in SpongeBob SquarePants on Broadway, for which he was nominated for a Tony and won a Drama Desk Award. Last season, he starred as the balladeer in the off-Broadway revival of Assassins.

He joins the already confirmed Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Ariana Grande as Galinda, and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba. Jon M. Chu, who helmed the screen adaptation of In the Heights, directs.

In the musical, Boq is the object of desire for Elphaba's younger sister, Nessarose (this role is not yet cast). However, his true love is for Galinda.

Wicked writers Winnie Holzman (book) and Stephen Schwartz (score) are collaborating on the screenplay. The 18-year-old musical is based on Gregory Maguire's bestselling novel of the same name, which retells the story of The Wizard of Oz from the perspective of the so-called "Wicked" Witch of the West. Universal Pictures plans to release the two-part film on Christmas 2024 and 2025.