Wicked
It could have been the biggest movie of the year
ESTIMATED domestic box office revenue
$311 – 411MM
Mythosis universal quests used
5
Audience appeal
8.32% – 11.09%
Hidden Potential
$660 – 720MM
Wicked is an adaptation of a popular musical, revolving around three characters — a teacher who exploits her students, rebellion of a favourite student and the rise of a mediocre student. The Wicked’s plot structure draws from five mythological tales and suggests that it had the potential to be the biggest movie of 2024.
1. The invisible plot structure of Wicked
1A. The script of Wicked borrows 96% of its events from 5 mythological tales
Elphaba’s quest is driven by the desire for self-reliance. The quest borrows events from Daedalus’ tale in Greek mythology. Both Daedalus and Elphaba gain recognition for their special abilities after being rejected.
Elphaba is also driven by the desire of fairness and justice. Her quest borrows a few events from Prometheus’ tale in Greek mythology. Both Prometheus & Elphaba rebel against their exploitative masters.
Glinda’s quest is driven by the desire to collect & own. The quest borrows events from Valmiki’s tale in Hindu mythology. Both Valmiki & Glinda are self-centred even letting go off their loved ones.
Glinda is also driven by the desire for companionship. Her quest borrows a few events from Psyche’s tale in Greek mythology. Psyche and Glinda exude an air of superiority because they are so highly sought after.
Madame Morrible’s quest is driven by the desire to dominate others. The quest borrows events from Circe’s tale in Greek mythology. Both Circe and Madame Morrible create a façade of godliness to lure unsuspecting victims and take control of their lives.
Fiyero’s quest is subsumed in the secondary quest of Glinda. Nessarose has an underdeveloped quest of Acceptance. OZ has no quest.
NOTE: Detailed mirroring of each character’s primary quest to their respective mythological tales is in section “3A. Quests of characters in Wicked and their mythological counterparts”
Mythosis plot structure
#13,628
Tales interweaved
Daedalus, Circe & Valmiki
I. How does interweaving mythological tales lead to infinite story plots?
II. Can the pursuit of a Desire have more than one quest?
2. The potential of Wicked’s plot structure: $311 – 411MM
The interweaving of 32 mythological tales can generate a billion unique stories. By using these 32 tales, we can extract the plot structure of any story across various genres. Our study of blockbuster, hit, and flop plot structures led to the discovery of the Mythosis Code, a set of principles for creating compelling stories. The plot structure of a story is analyzed to see how well it adheres to these storytelling principles.
2A. Plot structure evaluation of Wicked
- All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. Wicked uses 5 universal quests of Independence, Idealism, Power, Accumulation & Social Contact.
- In Blockbusters, each universal quest is mirrored by ONLY ONE character. Elphaba mirrors the universal quest of Independence & Idealism. Glinda mirrors the quests of Accumulation & Social Contact. Madame Morrible mirrors the universal quest of Power.
- Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Elphaba borrows 33% from the quest of Independence & 5% from the quest of Idealism. Glinda borrows 20% from the quest of Accumulation & 6% from the quest of Social Contact. Madame Morrible borrows 24% from the quest of Power.
- Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. Wicked has a perfect quest interweaving score of 1.
An example of interweaving the quests of Elphaba & Madame Morrible:
2B. Box office revenue estimation of Wicked
Wicked successfully interweaves three quests to create a cohesive story. However, the inconsistent character quests of Elphaba & Glinda create gaps in the plot structure.
The Script Score measures a plot structure’s adherence to the four principles of Mythosis Code. We use the Script Score to estimate a movie’s audience appeal & revenues. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Script Score
0.29
Audience appeal
8.32% - 11.09%
I. How is Mythosis Code used to estimate revenues?
II. Aren’t box-office revenues influenced by several factors beyond just the story plot?
3. The ideal plot structure of Wicked
We have identified 32 mythological tales, the superset of all tales across cultures. The quests of these tales have also recurred over time periods. They represent human behaviours that are deeply embedded in our shared memories. Each tale is the richest expression of the pursuit of a human desire. The tales have a unique pattern of events spread over 5 major arcs.
Mapping a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. Plugging these gaps with the missing events deepens the character quest. The missing events also provide an opportunity for interweaving the various quests. These events strengthen the story and unlock its hidden potential.
3A.Quest of characters in Wicked and their mythological counterparts
Quest 1: Elphaba mirrors the universal quest for Independence
Elphaba’s desire for Independence stems from the need for self-reliance and autonomy. The tale of Daedalus from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Independence.
Quest 2: Glinda mirrors the universal quest for Accumulation
Glinda’s desire for Accumulation stems from the need to collect and own. The tale of Valmiki from Hindu mythology has a robust expression in Dicken’s character of Scrooge which is the universal quest for Accumulation.
Quest 3: Madame Morrible mirrors the universal quest for Power
Madame Morrible’s desire for Power stems from the need to dominate others. The tale of Circe from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Power.
3B.Gaps in the current plot structure
Wicked’s plot structure has gaps due to the inconsistent quests of Elphaba & Glinda. Moreover, the quests of all three characters doesn’t mirror enough events from their respective mythological tales.
3C.Unlocking the hidden potential
Wicked’s plot is a subset of Mythosis plot structure #13,628 that interweaves the mythological tales of Daedalus, Circe & Valmiki. This plot structure substitutes events in secondary quests of Elphaba & Glinda, with events from their primary quests thereby
- Deepening the quests of Elphaba & Glinda
- Removing gaps in the plot structure
Enhance current revenues by ~2X with Mythosis plot structure # 13,628!
Tags: Circe, Power, Valmiki, Accumulation, Daedalus, Independence, Jon M. Chu, Winnie Holzman, Dana Fox, Universal Pictures, 2024