Production Designer Nathan Crowley Shares Insights on Cultivating Barley and 9 Million Tulips to Bring ‘Wicked’ to Life

When tasked with creating the magical world of Oz for the movie Wicked, Oscar-nominated production designer Nathan Crowley aimed to minimize the use of special effects and instead built massive sets on four backlots. These sets included Munchkinland, Shiz University, and the Emerald City, where actors could fully immerse themselves in their characters.

Crowley’s goal was to bring a sense of reality to the fantasy film by creating detailed and expansive sets that allowed the crew and actors to feel the world they were inhabiting. The challenge was to blend practical effects with VFX seamlessly.

One of the first sets built was the spinning wheels of the library, followed by Glinda and Elphaba’s dorm room. The most challenging set to design was the Emerald City, which took 15 weeks to complete. Crowley drew inspiration from Americana architecture, particularly from the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, to create transitions and grand framing shots within the Emerald City and Shiz University.

The production team also planted 9 million tulips and fields of barley to enhance the realism of the sets. The train that transports the protagonists in the film was 106 feet long, 16 feet high, and weighed 40 tons.

Crowley’s experience working on musicals like The Greatest Showman and Wonka prepared him for the scale and complexity of Wicked. He believes that every film he has worked on contributed to his ability to bring the world of Oz to life practically on set.

With his seventh Oscar nomination for best production design, Crowley considers Wicked to be the biggest project he has ever worked on. The attention to detail, practical effects, and grand sets created an immersive and fantastical world for the actors and audiences to experience.

For more behind-the-scenes insights into award-winning movies and TV, visit THR.com/behindthescreen.



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