Wicked: For Good earns a lukewarm Rotten Tomatoes score that's almost 20% lower than the first movie's

Wicked: For Good has earned a lukewarm Rotten Tomatoes score, and it's significantly lower than the first movie.

The musical sequel currently holds a score of 71% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 118 reviews ahead of its release later this week. By comparison, 2024's Wicked: Part One has a score of 88% – a drop of 19% in the reception of the two films.

Our own Wicked: For Good review gave the movie four stars, with our reviewer noting that "a darker and sadder Part 2 brings the story of Oz's witches to a moving close and cements Jon M. Chu's adaptation of Wicked as an absolute triumph," although "For Good suffers slightly from thinner source material and weak new songs."

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Not everyone was as positive, though. "Ultimately director Jon M. Chu’s more-is-more approach has a numbing effect, the endless spectacle leaving little room for nuance, depth or genuine feeling," reads Screen Daily's review, while The Independent says the movie "has little sense of movement, literally or emotionally – no profound revelations, no wonder or spectacle. All that's to be done now is for each character to process, via standardised ballad, what they've learned."

However, RogerEbert.com writes, "The songs may not be as catchy this time around, but Wicked: For Good really sings where it counts: with the emotional ache of the fractured friendship at the story's core."

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande return to star as Elphaba and Glinda, two unlikely best friends who are forced apart after Elphaba defies the Wizard of Oz's regime and is condemned as the Wicked Witch of the West. The movie adapts the second act of the hit Broadway show and incorporates the events of The Wizard of Oz, too – although Elphaba and Glinda remain the focus of the film.

Wicked: For Good flies into theaters on November 21. In the meantime, refresh your memory with our guide to the Wicked: Part One ending explained, or look ahead to the rest of this year's biggest movie release dates.