Comic-Con 2012: James Franco's 'Oz: The Great and Powerful' Trailer Unveiled (Video)

Sam Raimi is revealing who the man behind the curtain really is.

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The Spider-Man director took the stage at Comic-Con to unveil the first trailer for Oz: The Great and Powerful. Elements of it should seem familiar to fans of the 1939 classic.

Beginning on the Kansas planes in scenes shot in stark black and white, James Franco’s magician is seen wishing for a more exciting life.

“I don’t want to be a good man. I want to be a great one,” the star says.

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Per the original film, he’s sucked up into a tornado and transported to the colorful land of Oz, whose CG colors would look right at home in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. Witches played by Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz and Michelle Williams also make appearances.

Earlier in the day, a behind-the-scenes video was released in which Franco expounds on the nature of his character, a charlatan who eventually becomes the Wizard of Oz whom Dorothy meets in the 1939 film.

“The character that we've set up is, he's not a bad guy, it's just that, I guess because of his life circumstances -- he grew up on a farm in Kansas, his father, it was very hard -- so he does everything he can to succeed," Franco says in the video.

The prequel is based on characters created by L. Frank Baum in his series of 14 books -- the first of which was published in 1900. Franco apparently has read them all.

Watch the video below.