Original director John Badham stepped down when he objected to 33-year-old Diana Ross being cast as a teenage Dorothy. The character was changed to a 24-year-old kindergarten teacher, but by then Sidney Lumet already had replaced Badham.
The original New York City production of "The Wiz" opened at the Majestic Theater on January 5, 1975 starring Stephanie Mills. It ran for 1,672 performances, won the 1975 Tony Awards for the Best Musical and Score, and was nominated for Best Book.
In his book "Making Movies," Sidney Lumet admits that filming the Emerald City sequence on the plaza at the World Trade Center had to be cut short because of wind and scheduling. The red sequence had to be shortened due to a lighting error, and there was no time to re-shoot. The Port Authority would not allow more time to fix mistakes.
Sidney Lumet was chosen to direct primarily because of his reputation for finishing his pictures on time and within budget. The movie became the most expensive ever shot in New York City at the time.