Wicked and Wicked: For Good adapt an iconic Broadway show and its musical numbers. Here are all songs from both Wicked movies, ranked from worst to best!
2024’s Wicked and 2025’s Wicked: For Good have both been released to the public. These movies adapt the famous Broadway musical ‘Wicked’ from Stephen Schwartz, which itself is an adaptation of Gregory Maguire’s novel of the same name, which itself is a spin on the classic film The Wizard of Oz, which itself is an adaptation of a book. And they say originality is dead. With these cinematic versions come adaptations of all songs from the original show, as well as a couple of new ones. Which begs the question: which Wicked movie songs stand tall above the others when ranked from worst to best?
Wicked centers around Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo, Harriet), a young adult with green skin and strange powers. She befriends fellow student Glinda (Ariana Grande), only to be deemed the Wicked Witch of the West when she defies the beloved but crooked Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum, Thor: Ragnarok). In Wicked: For Good, Elphaba and Glinda face personal consequences for the sides they’ve chosen and must find a way to bring peace back to the land of Oz.
Though the songs’ standalone quality obviously reigns supreme, their use and presentation in the films will also influence where I rank each one (in a few cases, quite drastically). I’m also not counting “Dear Old Shiz” because its singing portion is literally 45 seconds long, so it doesn’t seem fair to include it. Everything else is in the running, so let’s get to the songs of Wicked and Wicked: For Good, ranked from worst to best! With, inevitably, spoilers for both movies ahead.
20. Something Bad
Wicked
I almost didn’t even count “Something Bad” either because of how short it is. In Oz, animals are losing the ability to speak and facing increased subjugation, which worries Elphaba’s goat professor Doctor Dillamond (Peter Dinklage, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes). He expresses such worries while Elphaba tries to encourage him that the Wizard can help… and the song ends, at just over a minute and a half. It’s hard to be too harsh with that small length in mind, but it’s also hard to say much at all.
Dinklage’s singing voice is technically weak, but it’s emotive enough to do the job, and him slipping into a goat bleat in his final note is genuinely unsettling. The whole song has the hushed, dark, frantic sound that’s needed for the situation at hand, so it gets the mood down in the little time it has. Let’s see, um… Cynthia Erivo sings her four lines really well. So, good work there. Yeah, I’ve got nothing else for this one. Let’s get to the songs that offer more to actually discuss.
19. The Wicked Witch of the East
Wicked: For Good
Though it’s longer than our last place song, “The Wicked Witch of the East” is so forgettable that I keep needing to relisten to it to remember what it sounds like. The number revolves around Elphaba’s attempts to make amends with her sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode), only for Nessa to let her own wickedness out by obsessively clinging to her love interest Boq (Ethan Slater). A majority of the song retreads the melody of “Dancing Through Life,” and the more original material takes a backseat to the events around it (along with plenty of spoken word).
The mutual toxicity of Nessa and Boq’s relationship hits its peak here, which is humorously opposite the song’s often-gentle tone. The three-way tension between them and Elphaba, who’s forced to intervene yet takes all blame for the aftermath, is of far more interest than the song itself. And with Nessa pretty much disappearing for the rest of the movie afterwards, it’s hard to have any strong feelings for the tune in any capacity whatsoever.
18. A Sentimental Man
Wicked
The final song in the okay-but-forgettable tier, “A Sentimental Man” consists of the Wizard of Oz describing his desire to help Elphaba and the rest of Oz. It’s got a soothing enough sound with warm lyrics describing “parental” love, all of which eerily contrasts the Wizard’s secret true nature. The literal set piece of the miniature Oz he wanders makes for a quaint, childlike backdrop as well. But “A Sentimental Man” is the second-shortest song on the list, and one of the least impactful on the ears or even the story.
It doesn’t help that Jeff Goldblum is by far the worst singer in both movies, whereas a more majestic voice akin to Joel Grey’s original Broadway version could have really boosted the song’s comforting nature. Seriously, Goldblum’s high note at the end is borderline painful to listen to. The first Wicked movie isn’t made worse by this song’s inclusion, but I’m not left feeling any form of sentimental when it’s done.
17. Wonderful
Wicked: For Good
Sorry to keep harping on Goldblum, but “Wonderful” is similarly dragged down by his inclusion. Thankfully, he’s joined by Glinda, who supports him in trying to convince a jaded Elphaba that the Wizard’s presence in Oz is good, actually. The chorus of “Wonderful, they think he’s wonderful,” is admittedly a bit infectious, Grande’s voice is an oasis in the desert of Goldblum’s performance, and the ending dance number is a dazzler when ignoring the awkward closeup on Goldblum’s face. (I promise I don’t hate this man.)
But vocals aside, the song’s got a bit too much of a show tune sound for me, like it’s trying too hard to be whimsical and charming. Which fits the Wizard’s character, I guess, but that doesn’t make listening to it any better an experience. Some imagery like the women riding through a void of pinks and greens is nice, but it comes and goes so quickly. Between imperfect singing, unremarkable writing, and a sense of pointlessness when Elphaba goes back to hating the Wizard shortly after, “Wonderful” is anything but its title.
16. March of the Witch Hunters
Wicked: For Good
It’s hard to go wrong with a song where literally everyone is fired up and done with this sh*t. Such is the case as an angry mob is formed in the Emerald City to hunt down the Wicked Witch. Boq spurs them on, blaming her for his transformation into a tin man (don’t ask). He also tells of a lion who was made cowardly because… um, Elphaba freed him as a cub? That nonsense aside, seeing the previously soft-spoken Boq become so rage-filled and, in his words, heartless is the most upsetting part of this dark number. Ethan Slater really steals the whole sequence right here.
“March of the Witch Hunters” is a short but generally rousing song, selling the enduring hatred that Elphaba now has no chance of escaping. It would probably rank a bit higher if it was longer and not the third song in the series that boils down to, “The Witch sucks,” but it serves its purpose well and amps you up for the final showdown to come. If only there was an actual final showdown to come.
15. Every Day More Wicked
Wicked: For Good
The big musical kickoff to Wicked: For Good, “Every Day More Wicked” is essentially our means of catching up with what all the characters have been up to since the first Wicked, using a medley of songs from the first movie that are reprised with different lyrics. That sounds a bit lame, but it works pretty well for the purposes of reintroductions. I especially love how the “Wizard And I” reprise is given a much more downtrodden key, reminding you how far Elphaba has fallen from her hopeful beginnings.
Meanwhile, Glinda’s life looks better than ever on the shoulders of a cover-up, and Oz is still creepily blinded from the truth about what’s really going on. When applying those dark themes to what were once jaunty numbers, “Every Day More Wicked” establishes its film’s tone very well. I can’t say anything else about it musically because… I mean, what’s left to say when it’s rehashing other songs? Thankfully, those rehashes are still good enough to make for a fun opening.
14. No Place Like Home
Wicked: For Good
It feels mean to rank this one relatively low, because its heart is clearly in the right place. But “No Place Like Home” is one of two songs made specifically for Wicked: For Good, and it shows. Elphaba is trying to convince the animals of Oz to stay and fight for their home, with the song’s title being an admittedly clever reference to the famous line in The Wizard of Oz. The lyrics are touching in their defiance to protect what should be held closest to us, even if we may not fully understand why. “Why do I love this place that’s never loved me,” says so much about Elphaba’s character on its own.
There’s nothing really wrong with the song itself. It’s not outstanding, but it’s sweet and passionately written. However, not only is it going up against really stiff competition, but you could cut it and miss nothing. The animals instantly decide to not heed Elphaba’s words, which begs the question: what’s the point? I won’t deny that my heart melts when seeing cute animals stare in gratitude at their kind protector, so “No Place Like Home” gets bonus points. But that’s about as much credit as I can give this decent little tune.
13. The Girl in the Bubble
Wicked: For Good
This is the second song made specifically for Wicked: For Good. And that movie’s sixth song to appear before the halfway point of the ranking. Do you see why its song lineup is considered the weaker of the two movies? Unlike “No Place Like Home,” I see the reason this new track was added. It’s Glinda fully realizing the mistakes she’s made and how sheltered her life has been, literally and figuratively in a bubble. I immediately give points for that clever analogy, but the very subdued song is also boosted by Grande’s fantastic acting and singing.
Thanks to “The Girl in the Bubble,” you get to know more about Glinda’s thought process at one of her biggest turning points, and a few accompanying visuals like her younger self in the bubble’s reflection are really effective. True, there’s an earlier song that gets similar emotions across better, and this one can’t musically hold a candle to most of the songs from the stage show. But at the point in the movie where it’s placed, something quieter and stripped back is needed for her character to set up the final stretch.
12. I’m Not That Girl
Both Wicked Movies
“I’m Not That Girl” is a very interesting case, because it appears in both films with exact opposite contexts. In Wicked, Elphaba sings it in full when lamenting the fact that, despite her growing feelings for her love interest Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey, Jurassic World: Rebirth), her lot in life means she won’t be the one he chooses. More broadly, it’s also a sad indication of how she’ll never be on equal ground to her peers even when they accept her. In Wicked: For Good, after Fiyero betrays Glinda and flees with Elphaba, Glinda briefly reprises the song to express the same sentiment.
In Wicked by itself, “I’m Not That Girl” is a pretty and sad number, albeit one of the weakest ones in the movie. Its effect is lessened by coming right after the first amicable scene between Elphaba and Fiyero, meaning I’m not exactly sucked into their potential romance yet. But I appreciate the song a lot more in conjunction with its Wicked: For Good appearance that, while much shorter, signifies the duality of Elphaba and Glinda throughout the overall story. With its graceful melody, pained vocals, and overall simmering emotional sound, this is a pretty good tune. #1, though? No, it’s not that song.
11. As Long As You’re Mine
Wicked: For Good
I wouldn’t have guessed the Wicked musical could use an 80s-style power ballad, but it’s all the better for it. Here, Elphaba and Fiyero finally express their love for each other, and while the romance is one of the flimsiest parts of both movies, this song really sells it in the moment. Between the enchanting keyboard riffs, lowly pulsing bass, and sultry vocals, “As Long As You’re Mine” is a surprisingly steamy – by Oz standards, let’s be clear – duet that Jonathan Bailey in particular slays in stylish, expressive fashion.
There’s a heavily bittersweet tinge to the music and lyrics when you know what these two have to go through from here, and that they need to grasp at this one moment before things go sideways. The setting of a secluded forest at night is a perfect complement to that vibe… If only it was done justice. This is one of a few big songs that are shot in a very flat, un-cinematic way, something director Jon M. Chu is occasionally guilty of. That isn’t enough to kill the song, but “As Long As You’re Mine” could have been a total showstopper had the visuals been able to do their part.
10. One Short Day
Wicked
In “One Short Day,” Elphaba and Glinda have arrived in the Emerald City, drinking in all the amazing sights and activities it has on offer. Between the great tracking shot that kicks off the song in earnest, the glamorous set pieces that fly by one after another, the catchy-as-Hell melody and jazzy flute, and the wonderful choreography, the first half of this song is one of the first film’s biggest sensory highlights.
We then get a performance from the Emerald City players, played by the original stage show stars Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth. It’s a smart way to honor their legacy with a fitting role, singing about how the Wizard of Oz came to be revered as he is. The simple production of this musical-within-a-musical is also charming, even if it goes on a little longer than needed. But I’m already grasping at straws here, as we’re now in great territory with these songs.
9. For Good
Wicked: For Good
I’m surprised to be ranking “For Good” this high considering how subdued it is, especially as the final main song of the entire story. But it speaks volumes in its simplicity as Glinda and Elphaba bid each other farewell, knowing they must stay apart for Oz to find peace. This is one of the prettiest songs in either film. From literally the opening notes, you can feel the tender finality, and the chorus is one of the few musical bits that’s soft and graceful but still instantly hummable. I also admire the track for staying orchestrally subdued the entire time and letting that emotion slowly wear you down.
But when it comes to how it’s handled on screen, Wicked: For Good owes everything to Grande and Erivo. You’re locked into their faces and voices all the way through, and they both sell their tearful goodbye so well that the song’s stage roots completely evaporate. In other words, it’s absolute cinema. I’m also including the tiny, higher-key reprise at the very end of the movie. If anyone was fighting off the tears during the main song, they’re gone once that final minute hits. There are no visual flourishes, but for once, that’s the right call to send the music out on a literal beautiful note.
8. Popular
Wicked
Is this song vain and pretentious? Yes. Should you care when it’s so good that just reading the title has you singing it in your head, elongated “u” and all? No. Glinda has just become friends with Elphaba and wants to boost her standings through basically what most teen girls consider popular: fashion, poise, hair, all that stuff. This is Ariana Grande’s highlight in the first film, and with the help of staccato-heavy keys, she struts, dances, and croons around the room like she owns every bed, wardrobe, and even dangling light. She fittingly captures all our attention and clings to it the whole way through.
While Glinda’s ideas of popular are clearly – to put it nicely – shallow, you can tell that she’s truly come to care for Elphaba and is doing what she thinks her new friend needs, which makes “Popular” work doubly as a nice bonding moment between the two. It’s one of the best aspects of Glinda’s early character: her heart is true even if her mind’s not fully there. I also can’t neglect the ending portion where the halls are bathed in intense pink lights, easily the most eye-pleasing moment in the film series. Simply put, this song is extremely popular for good reason.
7. The Wizard and I
Wicked
This one hurts to leave out of the top 5. On its own, “The Wizard and I” – which is about Elphaba’s desires to meet and fulfill her calling with the Wizard – is one of my absolute favorites in the entire musical. The lyrics are direct and filled with clever expressions of longing, it’s a glorious ear worm of majesty and pep, and it crescendos to an explosive finish at a perfect pace. Cynthia Erivo’s voice glides and soars through it all, with a final note that’s one of the biggest applause moments in the film. So, what’s holding it back?
Unfortunately, this is another song that’s let down by the filmmaking around it. With the static camerawork, basic blocking, and relatively dull way Elphaba reacts with her surroundings, the sequence is made visually lifeless. Even in the grand finale, all we’ve got is an ugly wheat field that bizarrely fails to match the scope of Elphaba’s ambitions. The only great touch is how colored lights transform Elphaba’s skin into how she wants it to look. Other than that, the song and performance are doing all the heavy lifting here. Luckily, they can lift a very hefty amount.
6. No Good Deed
Wicked: For Good
This is the closest thing Wicked has to a pure villain song, performed by Elphaba after tries to save Fiyero’s life and believes she’s failed. She realizes that all the good she’s tried to do has backfired, and therefore she’ll do no more. The opening spell incantation is as iconic as any audio from the musical, and it leads into a boiling-over of fear, confusion, anger, and resentment. “No Good Deed” is very frantic in its written structure, string-led orchestration, and even Erivo’s singing. That looseness works greatly in its favor, boosting our sense of Elphaba’s anguish and instability. Her delivery of, “What is this chanting? I don’t even know what I’m reading,” is overflowing with desperate panic all on its own.
It’s jarring to see Elphaba throw her sense of justice out the window and fully accept that she is, in fact, the villain of this story. The film takes advantage of such an angsty sequence with harsh reds, dynamic cinematography, and the most menacing Elphaba’s ever looked floating in the sky. Truly, she is now the Wicked Witch of the West. And by that, I mean she does one wicked thing before changing her mind after a single conversation. Still, the song’s fantastic and is done great justice in the film.
5. Thank Goodness / I Couldn’t Be Happier
Wicked: For Good
“Thank Goodness / I Couldn’t Be Happier” really crept up on me as my favorite song in Wicked: For Good. It’s Glinda’s celebration of the “good” she’s done and the opening of the Yellow Brick Road. Beginning with a peppy beat that sounds right out of the original Wizard of Oz, the music itself dances along with the colorful Munchkinland festivities, all while Glinda insists that she couldn’t be happier. But like most people who say that, she’s far from truly happy. And as the song nears its end and we hone in on Glinda’s beautiful, isolated singing, that hidden discontent is made painfully clear solely through how she sings.
The lyrics of the final portion are brilliantly written to be taken at face value by Glinda’s audience, but worded to sting like a bee when you know the façade underneath them: “’Cause getting your dreams / It’s strange, but it seems / A little, well, complicated.” This is also Ariana Grande’s best acting in either of the movies. The tiniest little giveaways in her face, and even the occasional slip in her voice, are all you need to feel how much guilt she’s really suppressing when all the flair is removed. This isn’t the single catchiest or most head-turning number in the Wicked: For Good, but it’s the one that’s been staying with me the most.
4. No One Mourns the Wicked
Wicked
What a way to kick off the whole story. “No One Mourns the Wicked” immediately establishes the style and feel of both movies, thrusting us into a new rendition of Oz that’s old-fashioned and new in all the best ways. This ensemble number sees Munchkinland receiving news that the Wicked Witch of the West is dead. This would exude pure satisfaction had we not known there was going to be far more to the story, and especially with the hindsight that the song exposes hypocrisy and ignorance more than anything else.
The choral singing is on point, led by Ariana Grande’s entrance as a Glinda who very clearly knows and feels more than she’s letting on. There’s even a mini origin story for the Witch/Elphaba herself tucked into the bigger number, establishing that the film is just as stylish in more intimate settings. The song on its own has a booming, pounding pulse befitting of an opening number and the land’s established mob mentality, and the lyrics rejoicing that the Witch “died alone,” have the same duality of cheerful and ominous. Even the staunchest doubters of the first film seemed to realize it would work by the time this song was done.
3. Defying Gravity
Wicked
Here it is, arguably the defining song from the musical and the final one of the first film. Elphaba has learned that the Wizard is a fraud behind many evils in Oz, so she finally embraces her powers and chooses to live hunted as a villain… over a longer period of time than needed. Yeah, I have to agree with this rendition’s detractors on one thing: this S-tier song is held back by how frequently it starts and stops throughout the finale. It’s fitting to stretch it out as the ending to a film, but the movie goes too far, sabotaging the momentum whenever characters stop singing to talk or partake in a chase.
And yet, “Defying Gravity” is so good and such a perfect representation of Elphaba’s arc that it still shines as one of the best in the film series. Erivo belts her heart out with such conviction that you feel yourself rising right alongside her. It’s both triumphant and tragic as she forcefully chooses to make her own path, but with clear pain knowing that it’s not the path she deserves. But it’s hard to feel too much pain when the soaring, sweeping orchestra cheers her along, or when she dons the iconic witch outfit in all its glory. While stretched a bit too thin, “Defying Gravity” is the biggest emotional, musical, and visual peak of Wicked, and it got everyone immediately ready to see what happens next.
2. What Is This Feeling?
Wicked
“What Is This Feeling?” officially kick-starts the resentment between Glinda and Elphaba as they continuously mess with each other. It’s one of the most distinctly recognizable numbers with a quick march-like progression through snappy vocals, backed by instrumentation that mixes snarkily playful with broadly grandiose. It goes from just two girls squabbling in a bedroom to basically the entire school joining in to sing about how horrid Elphaba is. Not to mention the totally-not-at-all-sexual undertones in the song’s descriptions of rushing pulses and flushing faces.
On top of that, this is the most energized, perfectly edited and staged song in the film series. Not a single moment goes by where you don’t feel the effort, from the effective split screen as the leads toss in their beds, to the rushing pans of them running to claim classroom desks, to the way it tracks the growing number of dancers, and even how it visually conveys information like Glinda’s continued jealousy of Elphaba’s bond with Dean Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All At Once). It may be about the feeling of loathing, but hearing and watching this sequence only fills me with joy. As perfect as it is, though, it just can’t compete with the all-encompassing epic of a song that is…
1. Dancing Through Life
Wicked
If you get through this song and aren’t won over by Wicked as a movie, you won’t be won over by anything afterward. Or you just hate fun. “Dancing Through Life” fires on all cylinders, covering so much ground in such magical fashion. Rebellious transfer student Fiyero is egging on the other students to cut loose, see the joys of life without worry, and join him at a nightclub party. The second half of the song continues from there as personal revelations are had, leading up to and during the party. To start, Jonathan Bailey takes full advantage of his biggest number, “swaying and sweeping” over tables and through spinning chambers with effortlessly commanding presence.
The camera’s allowed to get extra funky as it spins upside-down and all around, showing Jon M. Chu’s consistent ability to guide dancers through elaborate, immersive sets. The song starts casually upbeat, bouncy, and filled with infectious hooks and runs, before it goes more personal while retaining its swelling appeal. Finally, it lets loose with the best instrumentation in the movie at the nightclub itself, a furthering of connections between characters like Boq and Nessa, and much rejoicing after Elphaba and Glinda come together as friends. More than any other song in the series, “Dancing Through Life” is just bursting with, what else, life. A few other songs may be more iconic, but none quite have the perfect combo of visual wonder, irresistible sound, and emotional payoff that we get here.
Wicked is now available to watch on digital and on demand, and Wicked: For Good is out now globally in theaters.Read our reviews of the first Wicked movie and the 2025 sequel!