Oz the Great and Powerful

Oz: The Great and Powerful is an upcoming 2013 fantasy film directed by Sam Raimi. The film, adapted from L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, is intended as a prequel to the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. The film stars James Franco as the protagonist. Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams, and Rachel Weisz star as the three witches.

Plot
When Oscar Diggs (James Franco), a small-time circus magician with dubious ethics, is hurled away from dusty Kansas to the vibrant Land of Oz, he thinks he’s hit the jackpot—fame and fortune are his for the taking—that is until he meets three witches, Theodora (Mila Kunis) Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams), who are not convinced he is the great wizard everyone’s been expecting. Reluctantly drawn into the epic problems facing the Land of Oz and its inhabitants, Oscar must find out who is good and who is evil before it is too late. Putting his magical arts to use through illusion, ingenuity—and even a bit of wizardry—Oscar transforms himself not only into the great and powerful Wizard of Oz but into a better man as well.

Cast

 * James Franco as Oscar Diggs/ The Wizard of Oz
 * Mila Kunis as Theodora the Wicked Witch of the West
 * Michelle Williams as Glinda the Good Witch of the North
 * Rachel Weisz as Evanora the Wicked Witch of the East
 * Zach Braff as Frank and Finley
 * Joey King as China Girl
 * Abigail Spencer as Mrs. Hamilton
 * Ted Raimi as Skeptic, Tinker
 * Bruce Campbell as Gore / The Dark Wizard
 * Tony Cox as Knuck
 * Tim Holmes as The Strong Man
 * Martin Klebba as Nikko

Production
Oz: The Great and Powerful serves as a prequel adapted from author L. Frank Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz published in 1900. Before Sam Raimi signed on to make the film, directors Sam Mendes and Adam Shankman were also reported to be top candidates. In June 2011, Danny Elfman was chosen to compose Oz: the Great and Powerful. This comes after Elfman and Raimi had a falling out over Spider-Man 2 (2004) and declaring that the two would never again work together.

The script was written by Mitchell Kapner and David Lindsay-Abaire with Joe Roth serving as a producer. According to a reporter for Deadline Hollywood, its distributor wanted to reduce the film's production budget to about $150 million.

Initially, Robert Downey, Jr. was considered to play Oz. Then, Johnny Depp was linked to the role. By the end of February 2011, James Franco was in final negotiations to star in this film. This is the first time that Franco and Raimi have worked together following the conclusion of the Spider-Man trilogy.

Casting calls were put out for locals looking to be extras. Principal photography for Oz: The Great and Powerful began July 2011 in Pontiac, Michigan.

Release
In May 2011, before filming began, distributor Walt Disney Pictures gave it a March 8, 2013, US theatrical release date.According to an article published by Moviefone, Disney hopes Oz: The Great and Powerful will replicate the commercial performance of a similar 3-D CGI fantasy film; Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland (2010).

On July 12, 2012, the first official teaser trailer was shown at Comic-Con and released online.

On November 14, 2012, Disney has released the Theatrical Trailer on Itunes and released it online.