The beloved Broadway musical Wicked is finally heading to Hollywood and, on Thursday, Universal announced the two leading ladies who’ll bring Elphaba and Glinda to life on the big screen.
Taking on the mantle — or long black cape — of Elphaba, aka the Wicked Witch of the West, will be Tony award-winning actress Cynthia Erivo. Starring opposite of her will be Ariana Grande, donning Glinda’s signature pink sparkly dresses.
The two shared their excitement on social media by shouting each other out and raving over how excited they are to be starring in the beloved movie musical. Erivo shared the gorgeous bouquet Ari sent to her, which contained the note “Dear Cynthia, honored doesn’t even begin to cover it. I cannot wait to hug you. See you in Oz!”
Also in the picture slideshow, the Harriet star shared screenshots of the two learning they nabbed the roles and celebrating over a Zoom call. She captioned it, “Pink goes good with Green” followed by three green heart emojis.
As for the “Positions” singer, Ari shared an emotional photo taken the moment she learned she landed the role of her dreams. She also included a snap of the bouquet of pink roses Erivo sent her, along with the sweet note, “Congratulations Miss A, the part was made for you. I look forward to sharing this musical journey with you.”
Fans of Grande know that she had long dreamed of playing Glinda, the role her mentor, Kristin Chenoweth, originated on Broadway. She tweeted nearly a decade ago, in December 2011, “Loved seeing Wicked again… amazing production! Made me realize again how badly I want 2 play Glinda at some point in my life!”
Wicked, originally starring Chenoweth and Idina Menzel as Elphaba, made its Broadway debut in 2003.
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