Everyone’s heard the buzz around the live action remake of the Broadway musical “Wicked” with the pop star Ariana Grande. If not, let me catch you up.
The movie adaptation “Wicked” was first announced way back in 2012, but many factors contributed to major production delays, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. It wasn’t until the film’s director Jon Chu unveiled a brand new cast when fans knew the movie was on its way to the big screen. In November 2021, Ariana announced she had been chosen for the role of Glinda via an Instagram post.
In the coming months, we’ll see a new side of Ariana. From dyeing her hair blonde to experimenting with her style and vocal technique, she has turned away from the popstar image to the bubbly Glinda. Now, if Glinda is the good witch, who’s the wicked witch? Cynthia Erivo was cast for the role of Elphaba. Ariana and Cynthia became more than costars; they have turned into the best of friends.
In Spring 2022, Chu announced that the movie would be split into two parts, simply because there’s so much of the story to tell. With that being said, we’ve only gotten the first half of this new side to “Wicked”.
When Ariana appeared on “The Tonight Show” this past June, host Jimmy Fallon had a blast from the past and displayed a 2011 Tweet where Ariana stated how much she loved the Broadway production of “Wicked.” It “made her realize how badly she wanted to play Glinda at some point in her life!” with #DreamRole at the end of the post.
Little did she know, just 10 years later, she would earn the role she had always dreamt of. While some of her fanbase wants her to go back to music, I hope Ariana is truly enjoying herself acting. After all, she did just release an album, so she didn’t stray that far from music, right?
I wonder what other projects Ariana would take on in the future! She’s so iconic!