Wicked could've performed better during awards season if it wasn't split into two movies

This is my first time following a movie awards season, so please be nice! I’m mainly a music fan and have only followed the Grammys (which are a mess, but that’s a whole other post).

I think Wicked could have performed much better this awards season if it hadn’t been split into two parts. Some voters might be waiting until next year to reward the performances, though realistically, that seems unlikely, perhaps just for Jon M. Chu in directing. It just went 0 for 5 at SAG, where it was considered a frontrunner for Best Ensemble for a while. Critics Choice did bring a nice surprise win for Chu in Best Director, but overall, the film has struggled to win major pre-cursors.

At this point, costume and production design seem like Wicked’s only real locks at the Oscars. I’ll hold onto this opinion until next week, but for now, I truly believe it would have had a stronger awards run if it had been released as a single film. I’m sure the creative team and Jon M. Chu had their reasons for the split, but from an awards perspective, it feels like a missed opportunity.