Lin-Manuel Miranda is opening up about why he was ultimately not cast in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Wicked.

Jon M. Chu directed the movie musical, the filmmaker Miranda had worked with on the film version of In The Heights in 2021.

“This has gotten blown away out of proportion,” Miranda told Stephen Colbert on The Late Show.

The CBS late-night talk show host joked, “And we’re going to continue to do that right now.”

Miranda explained, “In the opening number of the show, this one munchkin runs out and goes, ‘Is it true you were her friend?’ Because, man, I don’t know if you’ve seen a live production of Wicked, but sometimes they really put some sauce on the ball when they deliver that line.”

“It’s where the story starts,” Miranda continued. “So I was like, ‘I really wanted to do that line, Jon.’ And I was not cast.”

The Hamilton star said that he understood why he was not given that role adding, “It would’ve been distracting.”

Kirsty Anne Shaw took the part with Miranda noting, “The young woman who does it in the movie is great. She does it very earnestly. I would have done very Regina George, Mean Girls like, ‘Is it true you were her friend?’ Didn’t make the cut.”

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande starred in Wicked in the roles of Elphaba and Glinda, respectively. The film’s cast included Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, and Jeff Goldblum. Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, who originated the roles of Elphaba and Glinda in the stage musical, made cameos in the film adaptation.

The sequel to Wicked, titled Wicked: For Good, is scheduled to premiere on November 21, 2025.

Watch Miranda’s full interview in the video below.