Watch Meryl Streep Warble as the Witch in an 'Into the Woods' Featurette
New footage from Into the Woods (in theaters Dec. 25) has been released — and this time, we actually get to hear them sing! This featurette gives us a closer look at some key moments from the dark fairy-tale musical, like Jack’s beanstalk sprouting from the ground and Cinderella (Anna Kendrick) fleeing from the ball. Moreover, we get to hear snippets of a couple songs from the Broadway show–turned–film.
First, we hear part of the opening number, “Prologue,” with its repeated refrain “I wish,” sung by Kendrick, James Corden, Emily Blunt, and others. And then there’s “Stay With Me,” the haunting ballad sung by The Witch (Meryl Streep) to her adopted daughter Rapunzel (MacKenzie Mauzy), urging her to “stay a child while you can be a child.” (Incidentally, a similar witch-Rapunzel dynamic was explored another recent Disney musical, the 2010 animated film Tangled.)
One thing that’s missing is any singing from Johnny Depp, who plays The Wolf, and who last showcased his musical chops in 2007’s Sweeney Todd (also written by Into the Woods composer Stephen Sondheim). Still, The Witch is the juiciest role in Into the Woods, and this featurette makes it abundantly clear that Streep plans to steal every scene, one “who cares?” at a time.
