Wicked Witch of the West

The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character from the Oz series. She is mainly known for being the main antagonist (villain) of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its adaptations, most notably The Wizard of Oz 1939 film.

 Story 
In the books, the Wicked Witch of the West is one of the four main witches in the first Oz book. She is the ruler of the Winkie Country and lives in a palace. The Wicked Witch also has one eye, which works like a telescope.

The Wicked Witch of the West is mentioned throughout the book but only makes her first appearance close to the end. The main characters, Dorothy, Tin Man, Scarecrow and the Lion are sent by the Wizard of Oz to kill the Witch.

The Wicked Witch sends wolves, crows and bees to kill the heroes but each fails. Her servants are too scared so she summons the Winged Monkeys to capture them. The Wicked Witch finds out that she cannot kill Dorothy so she enslaves her. The Wicked Witch also develops an obsession with the magical silver slippers that Dorothy is wearing.

The Witch manages to get hold of one slipper, making Dorothy angry. Dorothy throws a bucket of water at the Wicked Witch, causing her to melt.

 Other major appearances 

 1910 film 
In the 1910 Silent film The Wonderful Wizard of Oz with Bebe Daniels as Dorothy, The Wicked Witch of the West is named Momba. 

 1939 film 
In the 1939 film, the Wicked Witch is portrayed by Margaret Hamilton. The Witch is given a black dress, a black pointed hat, green skin and a broomstick.Zimmermann, Denise; Gleason, Katherine A. The Complete Idiot's Guide to Wicca and Witchcraft, 2nd Edition, Alpha, 2003. p.7.  This portrayal of witches has become very popular ever since the film has been released.

In this film, the Wicked Witch's sister is the Wicked Witch of the East (their relationship was never explored in the book). She also appears many times in the movie. The character ranks #4 in the American Film Institute's list of "50 Best Villains".

 Wicked 
The Wicked Witch's backstory is the main focus of the musical Wicked. In this story, she is named Elphaba. A film version of the musical was released in 2024, with Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba. In Wicked, Elphaba never actually turns evil and it’s actually everyone else lying about her. 

 Oz the Great and Powerful 
In the movie, Oz the Great and Powerful, the Wicked Witch of the West is named Theodora. She falls in love with a man named Oscar Diggs (also known as Oz) but he falls in love with Glinda so Theodora cries and her tears burn her skin so her sister Evanora gives her a potion to make her stop feeling love and it turns her evil and makes her skin green. 

 Once Upon Time 
In Once Upon a Time, the Wicked Witch of the West is named Zelena and she turns green since she’s jealous of her sister Regina. Zelena also wants to invent time travel.  

 Sources 

Category:Witches
Category:Fictional dictators
Category:Supervillains
Category:Movie characters