Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande to star in ‘Wicked’ film
Jon M. Chu, of 'In the Heights' and 'Crazy Rich Asians,' is expected to direct the film adaptation of the popular musical
Almost 20 years after premiering on Broadway, the Wicked film adaptation finally found its two leads. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are set to star in the feature as Elphaba and Glinda, respectively.
One of the most popular musicals of all time, Wicked tells “the true story” of the witches from the popular Wizard of Oz story, The Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch. With popular songs like “Defying Gravity” and “Popular,” the show became a pop culture phenomenon in 2003 and has spawned countless tours and productions across the globe.
Now with a movie adaptation officially on the way, fans were in for a surprise when Tony Award-winner Erivo and Grammy Award-winner Grande took to social media on Thursday to announce their involvement in the project.
Erivo and Grande shared screenshots of a FaceTime call with the film’s director Jon M. Chu, who helmed In the Heights from this summer. Erivo wrote to her followers, “Pink goes good with Green ??? @wickedmovie @jonmchu@arianagrande,” referencing a lyric from the show’s score, and the two lead witches’ signature colors.
Grande wrote in her Instagram post, “thank goodness ?,” quoting her character Glinda’s song in the beginning of Act II, “Thank Goodness.”
The post received over 5 million likes, with stars like Chlöe Bailey, Tori Kelly, and more taking to the comments to congratulate the pop star.
Erivo’s post also contained a picture of a personal message Grande wrote to her, along with a bouquet of flowers. It reads, “Dear Cynthia, honored doesn’t even begin to cover it. I cannot wait to hug you. See you in Oz.”
While Erivo found recent success on screen with films like Harriet and Widows, she is no stranger to musical theatre. The actress won a Tony Award for her acclaimed performance as Celie in the recent revival of The Color Purple.
Grande also has a musical theatre background, getting her start in the Broadway musical 13. Fans may remember she appeared as Penny Pingleton in NBC’s Hairspray Live! back in 2016. Ironically, Grande sang a signature Elphaba song, “The Wizard and I” for a Wicked tribute concert a few years ago, while Erivo just sang the Glinda song, “Thank Goodness” in Wicked‘s PBS concert earlier this year.
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