It’s no secret that Wicked follows the never-before-seen friendship between Glinda, The Good Witch, and Elphaba, The Wicked Witch of the West. But what has been a secret up until recently is the sweet and meaningful friendship that developed between the stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo off screen. We dive deep into their friendship, including what they learned from each other, what they like to do together and what their first impressions of each other were below!
Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo: First impressions
Before getting cast in the Wicked film, Grande and Erivo had never met before, but apparently, when they did, there was an instant connection—very similar to Elphaba and Glinda’s dynamic in the hit Broadway musical.
“The first time we met was at my house. We sat and chatted for a good few hours—five— and I think we just saw each other immediately. It was really easy. We didn’t have to think about it; we just were there, and that continued,” Erivo revealed. “ For some reason, we just connected immediately. Our voices really worked together. And I think from that moment on, we’ve been building, and it’s been the most fruitful relationship of my life.”
Grande added to that, saying their friendship is “continuing to grow, and it has only grown since day one. We both made the conscious decision when we met to take care of each other, and that’s what we have done in the realest of ways, every step. I always say this, but it’s one of the things that I think we’re most proud of. This whole thing.”
What Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande like to do together
When they aren’t hanging out in Oz, the two friends actually do quite a lot together, with Erivo saying that they often hang out together even when the cameras are not running.
“We were in most of the same scenes, but also between them, I was at [Grande’s] house, and [Grande was] at my house,” Erivo said before revealing that they “got many tattoos together.”
According to Grande, they also love to go on walks and shop, routines that have become “one of [her] most cherished parts of [the Wicked] experience.”
“I felt held and like I had a friend every step of the way. I’m really proud of us for how genuinely we took care of each other throughout this whole time.”
What Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo say about working together
In the second act of Wicked, “For Good” is a moving power ballad between Glinda and Elphaba where they tell each other how much the other means to them. And it seems the lyrics mirror how Erivo and Grande feel about each other in real life: “Because I knew you, I have been changed for good,” Glinda sings to Elphaba.
“Just by being around her [Erivo], I have become more of an ally to myself when I used to do a lot of self-abandoning, and I really do credit that to our friendship,” Grande said. “Through spending this time with her [Erivo] and also with a character that believes in herself, I feel like I’ve been able to heal certain parts of myself that were in deep need of having a friend like Cynthia and a friend like Glinda.”
For Erivo, meeting Grande and having her as a guide through all this newfound fame was needed. The actress said, “She [Grande] taught me to handle this crazy beast that is emerging success because I’ve had a measure of it, but this is new. She’s really held my hand all the way through it and wants it for me just as much as I want it for myself.”
Erivo also credits Grande with having “changed my life. I think it was one of the first times a person looked at me and just was happy with what was there. I would tell her about what I wanted for myself as a musician and she just believed it, I think more than I did. I don’t think it was up until I met her that I was like, ‘Oh, I think I can have what I want in this lifetime, and I can have it in my way.’”
You can watch Erivo and Grande on screen as Glinda and Elphaba in theaters on Friday, November 22.
