By the pricking of our thumbs, something wicked this way comes. There have been various arrivals and departures as the large cast of Disney's Stephen Sondheim musical Into The Woods has been assembled, but here's proof (if any were needed) that Meryl Streep is indeed the fairytale musical's Wicked Witch. She's not hovering through the fog and filthy air, but she has at least taken the trouble to climb a tree. Or perhaps she flew there on her broomstick.
Riffing on the stories of the Brothers Grimm, Into The Woods is about a childless baker who attempts to lift a family curse by journeying woods-ward to confront Streep's evil harpy. Along the way they encounter classic characters like Rapunzel, Cinderella, Jack (of beanstalk notoriety) and Red Riding Hood.
James Corden is the Baker, with Emily Blunt as his wife, Anna Kendrick as Cinderella, Chris Pine as Cinders' handsome prince, Lilla Crawford as Red, Johnny Depp (no stranger to Sondheim after Sweeney Todd) as the Big Bad Wolf, Annette Crosbie as Grandma, Daniel Huttlestone as Jack, Frances De La Tour as The Giant, Tracey Ullman as Jack's mother... and the list goes on and on.
Rob Marshall (Chicago, Nine, Memoirs Of A Geisha, Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides) is the director, and Into The Woods is currently scheduled for release at Christmas next year.