She has fought alongside Jackie Chan, proved to be a worthy partner for James Bond and sword fight in wuxia films but Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh is pretty nervous about her latest project.
She's starring as Madame Morrible in the musical adaptation of Wicked, which will be split into two films. In the movies – directed by Crazy Rich Asians' Jon M. Chu – Yeoh will have to sing!
While the Golden Globe-winning actress has said that Wicked will be the first time audiences hear her sing in a movie, fans of Yeoh have posted video of the 60-year-old belting a tune in the 1993 movie, Butterfly And Sword.
Trade publication Variety quizzed Yeoh about her "official" singing debut in the Cantonese movie which also starred Donnie Yen and Jimmy Lin.
“That was so many years ago in Taiwan,” she said.
Yeoh added at that time, she told the lyricist to make things simple for her.
“I said to him, ‘I don’t sing, and I don’t speak Mandarin. Can you please not have many words?’” Yeoh recalled. “But then the first time he showed me, I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’”
For now, the Everything Everywhere All At Once star is working with a vocal coach for her stint in Wicked.
“I went in thinking this is going to be so scary – they’re going to recast me when they hear me. But I am having so much fun!”
In Wicked, Yeoh is expected to sing The Wizard And I with Cynthia Erivo, who is portraying Elphaba.
Wicked: Part One will be released in December 2024, while the second part comes out in 2025.
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