Two sequels and a television series were originally planned. When this movie made only eighteen million dollars at the box-office against a seventy million dollar budget, the sequel plans were cancelled.
Megan Hilty previously played Glinda in the Oz-based musical stage play "Wicked". Although she didn't originate the role; Kristin Chenoweth did.
The source novel, by Roger S. Baum, includes many characters from the original Oz series by his great-grandfather, L. Frank Baum. Most characters who would be unfamiliar to the public have been cut from this movie adaptation, but the Queen of the Field Mice and the Saw-Horse have non-speaking cameos during "Work with Me". The princess of the Dainty China City was infact in The Wizard of Oz; L Frank Baum's original book; but Wiser and Marshall Mellow were creations of Roger Baum the grandson. The fighting trees were in the Wizard of Oz as well; the original L Frank Baum book. The Candy County was from Roger Baum's Dorothy of Oz; and the Jester was from Dorothy of Oz; and the Candy Apple General was also from Dorothy of Oz; although Glinda and many of the Oz leaders that Jester imprisoned were Baum creations in the original novel.
When the Jester becomes frazzled (and a little more evil) his make-up transforms into the Joker's make-up from Batman.
The various citizen's of Oz who appear in puppet cabinets with name plaques are all characters mentioned in previous Oz books. From left to right the name plaques (with the characters' first year of appearance in parenthesis) read: His Woodjesty of the Twigs (1922), Bandmaster of Tune Town (1927), Queen Else of Somewhere (1976), General Blotz (1935), Dainty China Princess (1900), Glinda (1900), General Candy Apple (1989), Grand Bozzywood* of Samandra (1930), Ferryman of Winkie River (1917), Chief Dipper of Pumperdink (1922), and Baron Belfaygor of Bourne (1929). *Bozzywood is actually a typo specific to this movie. The character's name is actually Grand Bozzywoz of Samandra.