The Wizard of Oz – Originated by Joel Grey
Before Wicked, Joel Grey – who is the father of Dirty Dancing star Jennifer Grey – had already won a Grammy, Oscar and Tony for his role as the Master of Ceremonies in Cabaret. So, it is no surprise that he took on the all-powerful Wizard of Oz in this production. Since this show, he’s mainly been active in theatre where he starred alongside Sutton Foster in 2012’s Anything Goes and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play for The Normal Heart in 2011.
Already proving that he can be the greatest showman, Hugh Jackman would be an ideal actor to take on this role. He has shown the tougher side he would need for the figure in the X-Men series, while also retaining a gentler side that shows off his singing voice like in Les Misérables.
This may sound a bit out there, but Eddie Murphy could also be the perfect Wizard. His booming voice and personality would be great for the figure of the Wizard, but he also has the softer side to portray the man. And if you’ve forgotten, he has already had an award-winning musical role in 2007’s Dreamgirls.
The youngest of the choices, the highly underrated Ewan McGregor has never shied away from any role and nails all of them. In Beauty and the Beast and Moulin Rouge!, he has shown off vocal skills that can charm, but he has also shown that he can play a role with dual personalities having played twins in the third season of Fargo.
