Ariana Grande knows a thing or two about magical worlds, but even she had a moment of awe when talking about her journey as Glinda in ‘Wicked: For Good’. The pop superstar and actress recently joined co-star Cynthia Erivo at a panel to discuss the highly anticipated second part of the Broadway-to-screen adaptation.
The conversation started with a lighthearted joke. Grande teased the idea of farewells, referencing Cher’s infamous tours. “You mentioned ‘farewell tour.’ If we’ve learned anything from Cher, we can count on there always being another farewell tour,” she said with a grin. “So I don’t think anyone’s going anywhere.”
Her comment sparked curiosity from the panel’s moderator, who cheekily asked, “Was that a confirmation of ‘Wicked 3’ just now?” Grande laughed and clarified, “No, no, I don’t know. I mean, first of all, I know that there’s a great peace that’s coming along with this coming out… people will finally get to know the full truth of these women.”
Grande’s excitement about the film’s release was clear. She shared how relieved she feels that audiences will finally see her character fully realized. “It feels like a big relief,” she said. “People will finally get to see and know and love Glinda. But first of all, no one’s going anywhere. These characters will be a part of our hearts always. They’ve changed our lives irrevocably and permanently, and I’m so grateful for that.”
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The actress also got emotional thinking about the lasting impact of the story and her role. “It makes me really emotional,” she admitted. “I’ll see a little kid and they’ll say, ‘Glinda!’ That’s going to be the rest of our lives. I get choked up saying it, but I think I will miss this particular work. The work that we were able to do together was really special and really challenging in the most delicious ways.”
Universal, the studio behind the films, hasn’t announced any follow-ups to ‘For Good’. But fans of the Oz universe have plenty of hope. L. Frank Baum, the original author of ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’, wrote 14 books in the series leaving plenty of untold stories that could one day appear on the big screen.
Grande also reflected on her personal journey while making the films. “I think, on a personal level and as an artist who really loves just making things, that spark of connection to my craft was also pretty disconnected for a little while,” she explained. “But working on ‘Wicked’, it really felt safe again to fall in love with creating. Maybe I was being seen for the first time.”
Equally heartwarming was Grande’s bond with co-star Cynthia Erivo. “Being able to do it with Cynthia, who I have a lifelong sister in, was absolutely the greatest gift of my life,” she said. “It couldn’t have been anyone else.”