Jon M. Chu misses ‘Wicked’ premiere for birth of his baby daughter

Jon M. Chu just celebrated a very magical night — and it had (almost) nothing to do with the premiere of his new movie, Wicked. 

The director behind the two-part musical epic is now a proud father of five after missing its premiere to welcome his fifth child with his wife, Kristin Hodge. Bonus: Attendees of the Los Angeles event were treated to a special surprise when, before its screening, a video popped up revealing that Chu was in the hospital while the crowd prepared to watch the film.

Showing off his artistic prowess, Chu opened the video with a shot of hospital monitors, eliciting immediate gasps from the crowd.

“I’m so sorry I can’t be there,” he said, turning the camera on himself. “It’s November 9. I was at the hotel across the street, ready to come. My whole family’s there. My friends, all our loved ones are there. And I’ve waited for three years to have this moment to share our movie with you… but I’ve waited my whole life to have this moment, to have our fifth child right now.”

Chu joked, “Of course this little girl knows when to show up. So anyway, I wish I could be there. But here I am.”

He went on to thank Universal Pictures, original Broadway creatives Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman, producer Marc Platt and “everybody who has believed in this project from the very beginning, before I ever came on, and believed in me to carry this tradition forward.”

He concluded his video message by passing the premiere baton back to Platt to introduce the film’s star-studded cast, which includes Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo as the two main witches of Oz as well as Jonathan Bailey, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Peter Dinklage, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Ethan Slater, and Keala Settle.

Chu and Hodge have four other children: Willow, 7; Jonathan, 5; Ruby, 3; and Iggy, 20 months. 

The filmmaker also acknowledged the night’s serendipity on Instagram, where he shared updates from the hospital. Hours before the premiere, he broke the big news on Instagram Stories with a photo of a “Defy Gravity” bracelet with his wife’s hospital room in the background.

“This movie has always moved in mysterious ways,” Chu began the post. “Today is a day I’ve been dreaming about for a long time. Two babies (a movie and a little girl) all at one time, and I truly couldn’t be happier I won’t be able to be at the Wicked premiere tonight with all of you.”

Chu continued, “There was a change of plans at about 4 a.m. this morning… Instead, my wife and I will be welcoming our fifth child into our family, and, no, we will not be naming her Galphaba.”

The portmanteau combines the names of Glinda and Elphaba, the witches played by Grande and Erivo, respectively.

The director also saluted the actresses and their costars. “Send all the love to our insanely talented cast and crew tonight. They deserve it, and send a little extra welcome to my little girl bursting her bubble and coming into our world any moment now. If she can even have a fraction of the bravery that my wife, @cynthiaerivo @arianagrande @michelleyeoh_official or @marissa_edob has then she too will defy gravity one day.”

In a separate post, Chu shared a glimpse of his suit for the premiere, still safe in its garment bag. “Should I just wear the suit for the birth?” he joked in the caption.

Much later in the night, while the premiere was still taking place, Chu shared a video of Hodge holding the couple’s newly arrived daughter.

“I can’t believe this happened while the movie is premiering,” he wrote. “Magic is in the air. Welcome to our world. You’re gonna do great. You have a lot of witches on your side.”

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly‘s free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.

Adapted from the beloved Broadway musical, Wicked serves as a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, following a friendship torn apart over time after witches Glinda and Elphaba first cross paths at Shiz University. The first movie opens in theaters on Nov. 22, followed by Wicked: Part Two in November 2025.

With additional reporting by Patrick Gomez and Gerrad Hall.