268 - The Sound of Wicked: For Good

Nov 26, 2025

Guest

Simon Hayes

Guest

Join sound legends John Marquis, Andy Nelson, Jack Dolman, and Simon Hayes as they delve into the auditory magic behind 'Wicked: For Good.' They explore the contrast between the youthful exuberance of the first film and the emotional depth of the sequel. Hear how they captured intimate live vocals and highlighted character emotions through sound design. Discover their creative process behind the film's new songs and the innovative soundscapes that brought aerial sequences to life, all while following Jon M. Chu’s visionary direction.

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INSIGHT

Mundane Build-Up For Maximum Reveal

The film opens by building mundanity then exploding into Elphaba's reveal to maximize emotional payoff.
Jack Dolman and John Marquis purposely reduced elements early so the Wicked Witch theme lands as a superhero moment.

INSIGHT

Emotion Guides Film Two Sonically

Part two shifts from world-building to emotion as the primary sonic driver because the foundation was set in part one.
The team let characters' internal feelings dictate sound choices, especially leading to "For Good."

ADVICE

Give Singers Freedom With A Hidden Click

Use a live keyboard locked to a hidden click to give singers expressive freedom while preserving tempo reference.
Simon Hayes used that setup as a "safety net" so performers could vary phrasing without losing editorial integrity.

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The all-star sound team behind “Wicked: For Good” returns to the show to discuss the bold sonic world of the film, and how it compared to the first. In this conversation, they break down everything from capturing on-set vocals to crafting the visceral aerial sequences — all while following Jon M. Chu’s vision for a darker, more mature final chapter of the “Wicked” story.

“In the first film — ‘world building,’ ‘set pieces,’ ‘youthful exuberance’ — those were all our keywords. And what we were leaning towards with the sound and music. On movie two, we’d already laid that foundation. So ‘emotion’ really became our superpower on this one. The characters’ emotion always guides the sonic world of each scene. And when you know you’re leading towards the song ‘For Good,’ which is as deeply emotional and compelling and heartbreaking as any song can get — and it represents the culmination of their relationship — you just have to follow the characters and follow what Jon Chu’s vision is for each of these scenes leading up to it.”

—Jack Dolman, Supervising Music Editor, “Wicked” and “Wicked: For Good”

Joining today’s conversation:

- John Marquis, Supervising Sound Editor / Sound Designer / Re-Recording Mixer

- Andy Nelson, Re-Recording Mixer

- Jack Dolman, Supervising Music Editor

- Nancy Nugent Title, Supervising Sound Editor

- Simon Hayes, Production Sound Mixer

Be sure to check out “Wicked: For Good,” now playing in theaters and Dolby Cinemas®,

in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®.

- Our previous episodes of Dolby Creator Lab with the artists behind Wicked:

The Cinematography of Wicked: For Good, with Alice Brooks and Jon M. Chu

Capturing Wicked's Live Singing, with Simon Hayes

The Music of Wicked, with Stephen Oremus, John Powell, and Stephen Schwartz

Director Jon M. Chu and the Sound and Editing Wizards of Wicked

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