Jon M. Chu Talks Of What ‘Wicked’ Says About The Courage To Speak Out As He Accepts MPA Award Before D.C. Lawmakers And Lobbyists

As Jon M. Chu, director of Wicked and its upcoming second part, accepted an award from the Motion Picture Association this week, he talked about the importance of courage and the tendency to calculate the risks of speaking out.

Before an audience of lawmakers, journalists and lobbyists, Chu said, “The story of Wicked is about many things — friendship, truth, power, but the narrative really hinges on a decision by one character, Elphaba, to stand up alone despite her fears and opposition to the cruelty towards others. Not only must she stand up to power, but she must reject the counsel of friends who advise her to soften her edge, don’t rock the boat, to compromise her most personal values because of what it would cost her, and she does it anyway, sacrificing her own dreams to do what she believes is right.”

He added, “Amid in the grand tradition of story, we have always loved these moral heroes who refuse to yield, from Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird, to George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life. Erin Brockovich, Thelma and Louise. I know I do, because we all want to believe that if we are faced with the same difficult choices, we would be Atticus or Elphaba, but most of us, myself included, if we are honest with ourselves, we are more like Glinda. We calculate the risk of speaking out and usually err on the side of caution. We want to do the right thing, but afraid to risk what we have. But luckily, heroism doesn’t have a hard out. Heroism has value no matter when we submit. And as my daughter said to me the other day, ‘You don’t get courage until after you do the scary thing, Dad.’”

Chu did not mention Donald Trump, or much of politics at all. But in D.C., his remarks come amid a widespread environment of corporate caution about the risks of getting on the wrong side of the White House, and even of how and whether to publicly push back.

When it comes to Hollywood, Trump, among other things, has threatened investigations of celebrity endorsements of Kamala Harris, urged the FCC to strip certain media companies of their broadcast licenses and, most recently, deemed Tom Hanks, one of Hollywood’s most beloved actors, as “woke” and “destructive.”

Comcast, the parent of Universal, also has come under scrutiny by Trump’s FCC chairman Brendan Carr over its diversity, equity and inclusion policies, which the company had promoted by citing Wicked.

The MPA event, hosted by chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin, focused on lawmakers from both parties who have defended the industry on issues like piracy and copyright, which typically draw bipartisan support. The honorees included Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD). The latter did not make it in person but sent a video message. Also honored was the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, with Ivan J. Arvelo accepting.

Chu also tied acts of courage to the creative process and to the support of studios, saying, “I believe that creation is an act of courage. Requires it, more than a leap of faith. It is a decision to jump out of a freaking plane with no parachute and trust that you will figure out a way to build one before you hit the ground.”

He added, “Courage can be contagious. And as members of the MPA, you practice this every day as you fight for the the people of this industry. And as filmmakers, we know this too. When you see someone dare to operate at their highest level of creativity, it inspires you to stretch further and dream bigger, maybe more than you know you can.”

Chu was later interviewed about the creative process by Kristen Welker, the moderator of Meet the Press.