There are so many fairy tale revisions floating around that I actually began this story talking about the Wicked Queen in Snow White. Since every other story in the trades is on Oz: The Great and Powerful or Snow White and the Huntsman…well, you can see how a girl gets confused, especially at 2am.
At any rate, Sam Raimi’s Oz: The Great and Powerful finally has a wicked witch of the West. According to The Hollywood Reporter, it’s none other than the lovely Rachel Weisz, who can certainly charm all kinds of snakes. Ahem.
Oz currently stars James Franco as the titular wizard, who isn’t a wizard at all, but a sleazy snake-oil salesman. (Creepy metaphor with the above photo not intended at all.) A magical hot air balloon carries him to the fantastical land of Oz, where he encounters all kinds of crazy magic, including that wielded by honest-to-Ozma witches.
One of those is Weisz’s Evanora, a powerful witch who wants to rule Oz and cover it with darkness. She hopes to recruit her lovely and good sister Theodora (played by Mila Kunis) to her cause. I imagine Theodora prefers Oz, and they rally against her, forcing her into the West where she develops such an unhealthy craving for ruby (or silver, if they’re returning to the source) slippers.
Weisz has been appearing in serious and heavy material the past few years, so it will be fun to see her playing something campy and fun, especially with Sam Raimi. Remember how much fun she was in The Mummy? I love serious Weisz, but it will be nice to see her cut loose again. At the very least, she should keep Franco awake.