Jon M. Chu Explained Glinda & Boq’s Dark Moment in Wicked: For Good

Spoilers for Wicked: For Good ahead. Both parts of Jon M. Chu’s Wicked film adaptation are out following For Good’s theatrical release on Nov. 21, and fans still have questions about what went down in Oz. The ambiguous ending is, of course, a hot topic, but it’s not the only one. Chu has since offered clarity on a loaded moment between Glinda (Ariana Grande) and Boq (Ethan Slater) after his transformation into the Tin Man.

A “Chilling” Exchange

While Wicked: Part I saw Boq pine for Glinda (then-Galinda) when they were students at Shiz University, those tender feelings are wiped out by the time he becomes the Tin Man in For Good. He suffers greatly at the hands of Nessarose (Marissa Bode). Not only does she keep him as her servant, she goes on to botch a spell meant to make him fall in love with her, which causes Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) to transform him into metal to save him.

When Glinda sees Boq again, she’s shocked to discover him as the Tin Man, instigating a mob of Ozians and singing that he’ll be “heartless” toward Elphaba. He spots Glinda as she stands on her balcony above and gives her a look that Redditors described as “chilling” and “terrifying” as they debated whether or not she recognizes him.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Chu confirmed that Glinda did indeed recognize her old schoolmate. “I don’t necessarily like to say exactly what it is... but yeah, in my mind, she knows it’s Boq,” he said. “I think she recognizes, she sees it in his eyes.”

Chu further explained that the moment shows the changes in Oz hitting home for her. “I think there’s also something she knows inherently and it makes her ask herself, ‘What has become of this world that I knew?’” he said.

“A Tragic Arc”

Slater previously spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about when Boq looks up at Glinda during the “March of the Witch Hunters” number. “I do think that Boq looks up because he knows that she’s there,” he said. “She famously lives there. But instead of being able to see her, or being able to remember this friend of his who he was deeply in love with, he’s still so fueled by his anger that all he can see is the torches in the way.”

He also described his character’s journey across the two movies as “a tragic arc.” Initially, he’s “somebody who is looking for his place in the world,” but ends up turning into someone he couldn’t have imagined. Beyond Wicked: For Good, though, he gets a chance at redemption in other Wonderful Wizard of Oz-inspired works, potentially including Wicked 3 someday.