All the Actresses Who Have Played Dorothy: 10 ‘Wizard of Oz’ Stars Who Followed the Yellow Brick Road

Over the last 85 years, there has been no shortage of actresses who have played the red ruby slipper-wearing Dorothy Gale as she travels through the merry old Land of Oz. It began with the late Judy Garland and has expanded to include actresses like Lea Michelle and Zooey Deschanel, but those aren’t the only three that ever walked down the Yellow Brick Road. Here, we have rounded up 10 actresses who have either played or voiced L. Frank Baum’s Dorothy over the past 85 years. Keep scrolling for more. 

Judy Garland in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (1939)

Judy Garland might have been the first person to wear the ruby slippers, sing alongside The Tin Man, The Cowardly Lion, and The Scarecrow, and have her house land on The Wicked Witch of The East, but she certainly wasn’t the last. 

Aside from her work in this film, the late actress is best known for her work in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944), A Star is Born (1954) and Judgment at Nuremberg (1961). 

Garland was married five times and had three children before her tragic death in 1969. She was 47 and is best remembered for her everlasting impact on show business, including that incredible voice — featured so beautifully in The Wizard of Oz on “Over the Rainbow.”.  

June Foray as the voice of Dorothy in ‘Off to See the Wizard’ (1967 to 1968)

Emmy winner June Foray became the second person ever to play Dorothy and was the first actress to ever voice her in a cartoon. Her version of the girl who went off to see the Wizard on her journey to figure out how to return home lasted for 25 episodes as animated wraparounds for live action MGM family films airing on ABC. 

Before and after her time in Oz, Foray was best known for her voice work, her later credits including Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), Mulan (1998) and The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000). She died in 2017, two months before her 100th birthday. 

Liza Minnelli as the voice of Dorothy in ‘Journey Back to Oz’(1972)

Following in her mother’s ruby red slippers, Liza Minelli voiced Dorothy 33 years after Garland originated the role. In Journey Back to Oz, a cartoon, Dorothy gets taken back to Oz one more time to face off against The Wicked Witch of the West’s cousin. Margret Hamilton — the original Wicked Witch of The West — voices Auntie Em in the film, and Mickey Rooney — a very close friend of Garland’s — voices the Scarecrow while Paul Lynde does the same for Jack Pumpkinhead. 

Minelli, who is 78, hasn’t acted since 2013. 

Diana Ross in ‘The Wiz’ (1978)

Singer Diana Ross could officially tell people that her time in Oz officially made her “The Boss.” Ross was the first black woman ever to portray Dorothy in the musical film The Wiz, based on the 7-time Tony Award winning 1974 Broadway musical of the same name. Following Dorothy as she tries to make her way back to Manhattan rather than Kansas, the film also stars Michael Jackson as Scarecrow, Nipsey Russell as Tin Man, Red Ross as Cowardly Lion and Richard Pryor as The Wiz.

Ross is currently 80 years old and has eight grandchildren. 

Fairuza Balk in ‘Return to Oz’ (1985)

The very controversial 1985 film Return to Oz — produced by Disney, not MGM — features child star Fairuza Balk in the role of Dorothy. Balk had only been in two other projects prior to her time in The Emerald City and was only 11 years old when the movie came out. 

Despite all the criticism the movie received, the actress has gone on record defending the film, saying, “I think it’s a sweet film. All the creatures are lovable, all except the witch and the Nome King.”

Since then, Balk has continued to act in movies like The Craft (1996), American History X (1998) and Almost Famous (2000). 

Liz Georges as the voice of Dorothy in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (1990) 

Actress Liz Georges might only have 31 credits to her name, but voicing Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz certainly made her a household name. The show ran for 13 episodes and followed Dorothy as she returned to Oz to defeat The Wicked Witch of The West (Tress MacNeille) and her winged monkeys one last time. 

Georges's other titles include Phantom 2040 (1994 to 1995), Spider-Man: The Animated Series (1994 to 1997) and As Told by Ginger (2000 to 2009). She is married and has two children. 

Zooey Deschanel as the voice of Dorothy “DG” in ‘Tin Man’ (2007) 

Before she became Jess Day in New Girl, actress Zooey Deschanel decided to take a trip to Munchkinland with her dog Toto and play Dorothy — or DG — in the 2007 mini-series Tin Man. The SciFi Channel miniseries was a modern retelling of the classic story, and it went on to win an Emmy. 

“The themes are very powerful and definitely stick with you,” says the actress. “DG is a young woman who doesn't know how she fits in… Soon she starts to discover things about herself that she didn’t know, and in the process, she starts searching for her family and for who she is.” 

Deschanel is still acting to this day and recently got engaged to Jonathan Scott. 

Paulie Rojas in ‘The Witches of Oz’ (2011) and ‘Dorothy and the Witches of Oz’ (2012) 

Paulie Rojas brought Dorothy in another Ozian-inspired miniseries with a very modern take. In the two-episode show—which was later edited down to  a movie—best-selling author Dorothy Gale (Rojas) learns that her books set in The Emerald City are actually repressed memories from her childhood. 

Rojas made history by becoming the first Hispanic woman to play Dorothy and is still acting to this day. 

Lea Michelle as the voice of Dorothy in ‘Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return’ (2013)

Actress, mother, best-selling author and Broadway star Lea Michelle becomes the ninth ever Dorothy in this 2014 cartoon that follows Dorothy as she returns to Oz to save her friends from the evil Jester — who just so happens to be the younger brother of the Wicked Witch of The West. 

Says Michelle, “All of the colors and effects and everything being done was so amazing. I loved being able to sing in it along with Megan Hilty and Bernadette Peters. They are so incredibly talented.” 

Michelle is best known for her work as Rachel Berry in Glee (2009 to 2015). She and husband Zandy Reich just welcomed their second child.Adria Arjona in ‘Emerald City’ (2015)

Kari Wahlgren as the voice of Dorothy in ‘Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz’ (2017 to 2020)

The most recent actress to play Dorothy is Kari Wahlgren. Like her character, Wahlgren is originally from Kansas, but instead of choosing life on a farm, she chose to become a very well-known voice actress. She is 47 years old and still acting. 

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