The truth behind the millions of tulips planted for ‘Wicked’
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(Credits: Universal Pictures)
The intrigue behind Jon M Chu’s Hollywood reimagining of the stage sensation Wicked goes far beyond the story itself. This time around, visual effects have taken an intentional back seat.
While eager fans cannot wait to catch a glimpse of Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in action as the innocent Glina and misunderstood Elphaba, mainly due to a mysterious and strangely enticing press circuit, other reasons to pay attention include the production designer’s intent on creating a world that felt as real as possible.
Nathan Crowley, who designed the movie’s weird and wonderful set, had a somewhat different vision from the rest of his team for Munchkinland’s Munchkin Village, which he felt would benefit from employing nine million tulips to ensure it looked and felt completely real on screen.
Of course, Chu initially challenged Crowley’s vision and questioned why it was worth growing their own flowers instead of utilising computer-generated imagery, but he eventually allowed the designer to realise his imagination. “I said, ‘I have to do this, and you have to go with me,’” Crowley told Variety. “And they did.” However, according to Crowley, the next challenge was “tulip farming,” which everybody knew very little about. To overstep the hurdle, they enlisted help from a farmer who helped grow nine million tulips.
“I said to Adam [Richards], my location manager and said, ‘We’re going to grow tulips, and we have to learn about tulip farming,’” Crowley said, adding, “They found a tulip farmer, Mark Eves in Norfolk, England, who offered to help plant and grow the bulbs — all 9million. They were the colours of the rainbow. They came up and it was just beautiful.”
Chu had good reason to trust Crowley, considering he had also previously grown “500 acres of corn” for Interstellar, recognising the power of utilising realistic designs and how they appear on camera.
For Munchkinland’s Munchkin Village, the tulips provide an immense spectacle from the film’s opening number, and, because they exist in the real world, fans will be able to experience it for themselves next spring.
The Eves-owned Belmont Farms is planning to open its doors to the famed Munchkin Village next April, where film lovers can experience the impressive endless rows of flowers as though they were in the Land of Oz themselves.
Set in Oz before Dorothy’s arrival, Wicked focuses on Elphaba and Glinda’s moments at Shiz University when they become friends before the former becomes the Wicked Witch of the West and the latter becomes the Good Witch of the North.
