The Wiz (film)
Updated: 12/11/2025, 12:08:39 PM Wikipedia source
The Wiz is a 1978 American musical fantasy adventure film directed by Sidney Lumet. Adapted from the 1974 Broadway musical, the film reimagines the classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum with an African American cast. Dorothy Gale, a 24-year-old teacher from Harlem, is magically transported to the urban-fantasy Land of Oz. On her travels seeking help from the mysterious Wiz, Dorothy befriends a Scarecrow, a robot called Tin Man, and a Cowardly Lion. Produced by Universal Pictures and Motown Productions, filming took place in Queens, New York City, from July to December 1977, with a cast starring Diana Ross, Michael Jackson (in his only feature film role), Nipsey Russell, Ted Ross, Mabel King, Theresa Merritt, Thelma Carpenter, Lena Horne and Richard Pryor. The story is reworked from William F. Brown's Broadway libretto by Joel Schumacher, and Quincy Jones supervised the adaptation of songs by Charlie Smalls and Luther Vandross. A handful of new songs, written by Jones and the songwriting team Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson, were added for the project. The Wiz was theatrically released the following year on October 24, 1978, to critical and commercial failure. Some critics unfavorably compared the film to its source material and took issue with the casting of Ross as Dorothy, while others criticized the direction of Lumet, who was considered a poor choice for directing a musical. Despite its initial failure, critics have become more favorable, and it has become a cult classic among audiences, Ross's fanbase, Jackson's fanbase and Oz enthusiasts. The 2015 live television adaptation The Wiz Live! is influenced by the film.
Infobox
Directed by
Sidney Lumet
Screenplay by
Joel Schumacher
Based on
mw- The Wiz1975 playby William F. Brown The Wonderful Wizard of Oz1900 novelby L. Frank Baum
Produced by
Rob Cohen
Starring
Diana Ross Michael Jackson Nipsey Russell Ted Ross Lena Horne Richard Pryor
Cinematography
Oswald Morris
Edited by
Dede Allen
Music by
Charlie Smalls
Productioncompany
Motown Productions
Distributed by
Universal Pictures
Release date
October 24, 1978 (1978-10-24)
Running time
133 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$24 million
Box office
$21 million
Tables
· Accolades
Academy Awards
Academy Awards
Award
Academy Awards
Category
Best Art Direction
Nominee(s)
Art Direction: Tony Walton and Philip Rosenberg; Set Decoration: Edward Stewart and Robert Drumheller
Result
Nominated
Best Cinematography
Best Cinematography
Award
Best Cinematography
Category
Oswald Morris
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Costume Design
Best Costume Design
Award
Best Costume Design
Category
Tony Walton
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Adaptation Score
Best Adaptation Score
Award
Best Adaptation Score
Category
Quincy Jones
Nominee(s)
Nominated
NAACP Image Awards
NAACP Image Awards
Award
NAACP Image Awards
Category
Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture
Nominee(s)
Michael Jackson
Result
Won
Saturn Awards
Saturn Awards
Award
Saturn Awards
Category
Best Fantasy Film
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Actress
Best Actress
Award
Best Actress
Category
Diana Ross
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actor
Award
Best Supporting Actor
Category
Michael Jackson
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Supporting Actress
Best Supporting Actress
Award
Best Supporting Actress
Category
Mabel King
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Costumes
Best Costumes
Award
Best Costumes
Category
Tony Walton
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Make-up
Best Make-up
Award
Best Make-up
Category
Stan Winston
Nominee(s)
Nominated
Best Special Effects
Best Special Effects
Award
Best Special Effects
Category
Albert Whitlock
Nominee(s)
Nominated
| Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
| Academy Awards | Best Art Direction | Art Direction: Tony Walton and Philip Rosenberg; Set Decoration: Edward Stewart and Robert Drumheller | Nominated | |
| Best Cinematography | Oswald Morris | Nominated | ||
| Best Costume Design | Tony Walton | Nominated | ||
| Best Adaptation Score | Quincy Jones | Nominated | ||
| NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture | Michael Jackson | Won | |
| Saturn Awards | Best Fantasy Film | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress | Diana Ross | Nominated | ||
| Best Supporting Actor | Michael Jackson | Nominated | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Mabel King | Nominated | ||
| Best Costumes | Tony Walton | Nominated | ||
| Best Make-up | Stan Winston | Nominated | ||
| Best Special Effects | Albert Whitlock | Nominated | ||
References
- The Wizhttps://web.archive.org/web/20200814084100/https://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/wiz-1970-0
- Mr. and Mrs. Hollywood: Edie and Lew Wasserman and Their Entertainment Empirehttps://archive.org/details/mrmrshollywooded00shar/page/357
- History of the American Cinemahttps://archive.org/details/historyofamerica0000unse_x8l5/page/64
- Reel Black Talk: A Sourcebook of 50 American Filmmakershttps://archive.org/details/reelblacktalksou00moon
- America on Film: Representing Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality at the Movies
- Where Did Our Love Go? The Rise and Fall of the Motown Sound
- thestar.comhttps://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/opinion/2018/03/21/the-wiz-wasnt-so-wonderful-for-black-cinema.html
- The Badger Heraldhttps://badgerherald.com/artsetc/2017/02/21/big-bads-the-wiz-adaptation-tarnishes-broadway-classic
- Los Angeles Timeshttps://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-the-wiz-40-anniversary-20181024-story.html
- Slashfilmhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44409-2005Jan28.html
- The Griohttp://thegrio.com/2011/04/11/how-lumets-the-wiz-became-a-black-cult-classic/
- "The Wiz LIVE!" Cast!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0A1nIcM5dw&t=3m53s
- A Lifetime to Get Here: Diana Ross: The American Dreamgirl
- TIMEhttps://time.com/archive/6845970/cinema-nowhere-over-the-rainbow/
- The Directors: Take Onehttps://archive.org/details/directorstaketwo0000emer/page/333
- Sidney Lumet: Interviews
- The Grove Book of Hollywood
- Movieline.comhttp://movieline.com/2011/10/10/joel-schumacher-tells-movieline-about-the-time-he-wrote-the-wiz/
- Timehttps://time.com/4135018/the-wiz-michael-jackson/
- Q: The Autobiography of Quincy Joneshttps://archive.org/details/qautobiographyof00jone_0/page/229
- Costume Design: Techniques of Modern Masters
- The New York Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/arts/dance/louis-johnson-90-genre-crossing-dancer-and-choreographer-dies.html
- "The Wiz"https://catalog.afi.com/Film/57058-THE-WIZ
- Michael Jackson: The King of Pop
- Boogaloo: The Quintessence Of American Popular Music
- Billboard's Hottest Hot 100 Hits
- Variety
- Variety
- Variety
- https://www.regmovies.com/movies/the-wiz-2025-event-ho00018545https://www.regmovies.com/movies/the-wiz-2025-event-ho00018545
- Variety
- Variety
- TIMEhttps://web.archive.org/web/20081205190138/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,912236,00.html
- TVTango.comhttp://www.tvtango.com/listings/1984/05/05
- Deadline Hollywoodhttps://web.archive.org/web/20200806154115/https://deadline.com/2011/08/bounce-tv-to-launch-with-the-wiz-162782/
- Cinema Sequels and Remakes, 1903–1987https://archive.org/details/cinemasequelsrem00robe/page/834
- Jackson, Alex (2008) "DVD review of The Wiz: 30th Anniversary Edition Archived March 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine". Fhttp://www.filmfreakcentral.net/dvdreviews/wiz.htm
- Pittsburgh Tribune-Reviewhttp://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/tribpm/s_552032.html
- San Jose Mercury News
- "The Wiz Blu-Ray [Review]"http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Wiz-Blu-ray/15402/
- "THE WIZ Movie Joining the Criterion Collection in June"https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/THE-WIZ-Movie-Joining-The-Criterion-Collection-in-June-20250314
- Rotten Tomatoeshttps://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wiz
- The Wiz at Metacritichttps://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-wiz
- Variety
- Variety
- Motown: Music, Money, Sex, and Power
- Through the Screen Door: What Happened to the Broadway Musical When It Went to Hollywood
- Michael Jackson the Solo Years
- The Classic Rock and Roll Readerhttps://archive.org/details/classicrockrollr0000stud/page/137
- Entertainment Celebrities
- Blockbuster: How Hollywood Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Summerhttps://archive.org/details/blockbusterhowho00shon/page/34
- Reel to Real
- Mediumhttps://zimberoff.medium.com/get-off-my-set-67d4396f67
- Baltimore Sunhttps://www.baltimoresun.com/2010/10/11/just-how-bad-was-the-movie-of-the-wiz
- Diana Ross: The American Dream Girl : a Lifetime to Get Herehttps://books.google.com/books?id=McDPdRcU_dQC&q=Cohen
- Michael Jackson: In His Own Words
- Big Bang Baby: The Rock and Roll Trivia Book
- The Wiz (1978) movie review - Sneak Previews with Roger Ebert and Gene Siskelhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iC6br7UPw7Y
- American Jewish Filmmakers
- Filmcritic.comhttps://archive.today/20130123014847/http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/The-Wiz
- The Washington Posthttps://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44409-2005Jan28.html
- The New York Times
- St. Petersburg Times
- The Boston Globe
- Essencehttps://www.proquest.com/docview/1818432160
- WNYC Studioshttps://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/anxiety/articles/what-the-wiz-was-and-is-to-black-culture
- "The 51st Academy Awards (1979) Nominees and Winners"https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1979
- Destination Hollywood: The Influence of Europeans on American Filmmaking
- Jethttps://books.google.com/books?id=dLYDAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22michael+jackson%22+wiz+naacp&pg=PA60
- Saturn Awards.orghttps://web.archive.org/web/20080914184217/http://www.saturnawards.org/past.html