As the final chapter of WickedAs the big screen adaptation approaches, Marissa Bode explains how the film removes an ableist plot point.
The actress, who returns as Nessa in Villain: for good when it premiered in theaters on November 21, recently explained that the wheelchair character’s “ultimate true desire is love,” unlike the Broadway musical, where his desire was to be able to walk.
“I’m so happy with the change, the old narrative was outdated,” Bode said. Go to magazineafter the book’s author and Broadway film co-writer Winnie Holzman consulted a disabled friend and changed the story.
While the musical had Elphaba (played by Cynthia Erivo in the film) enchant her sister’s shoes so she could walk, which many people interpreted as being able to, the final trailer for Jon M. Chu’s upcoming sequel shows the enchantment giving Nessa the ability to fly.
“And I’ll be honest, it was really fun flying through the air on set,” Bode said. “Overall, this change makes perfect sense to me, given that “everyone deserves a chance to fly.”
Bode explained that Nessa’s new arc highlights how frustrating it is for people with disabilities to be “fidgety” when they don’t need help, no matter how well-meaning they may be.
“Sometimes people with disabilities need help. All people with disabilities are different, so mobility levels are different,” Bode said. “Asking for help is okay, while also letting non-disabled people know that they shouldn’t always assume.”
In the musical, Elphaba’s younger sister Nessarose is a paraplegic, who later becomes the Wicked Witch of the East, ruler of Munchkinland.
