Broadway
Queen Latifah and Mary J. Blige Join TV Adaptation of ‘The Wiz’
NBC has added some major stars to its cast for its upcoming live television production of The Wiz.
Queen Latifah and Mary J. Blige have signed on to portray Wiz and Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West, respectively. The two will join Stephanie Mills, who will take on the role of Auntie Em. Mills played Dorothy in the original Broadway cast back in 1975.
Latifah is no stranger to musicals. The actress appeared in 2007’s Hairspray and 2002’s Chicago.
The musical will be executive produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, who also produced NBC’s previous live musical productions of The Sound of Music Live! and Peter Pan Live! Kenny Leon and Harvey Fierstein are slated to direct.
Zadan confirmed the casting news on Twitter:
Executive Producers @craigzadan @neilmeron welcome @IAMQUEENLATIFAH @maryjblige to join @PrettyMill1 in #TheWizLive @nbc Thu Dec 3rd
— Craig Zadan (@craigzadan) July 28, 2015
NBC is currently searching for an actress to play the lead role of Dorothy. The network held an open casting call in New York last month.
The Wiz: Live! will air December 3rd on NBC.