Thank goodness! TheWickedmovie has found its leading witches.
Ariana GrandeandCynthia Erivoare set to star in the film adaptation of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical as Glinda and Elphaba, respectively. The actresses, as well as directorJon M. Chu, announced the news on Instagram Thursday.
“These two witches!!” Chuwrote alongside photosof Grande and Erivo finding out they’d been cast. “The emotional moment I got to tell @cynthiaerivo and @arianagrande that they were our Elphaba and Galinda in the @WickedMovie for @unistudios 😭😭😭wait until you see what they bring!! It is other worldly. Ahhhhh!!!”
In a post of her own, Erivoshared a photoof a pink and green floral arrangement that Grande had sent her with a note that read: “Dear Cynthia, honored doesn’t even begin to cover it. I cannot wait to hug you. See you in Oz.”
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Grandealso received flowersfrom her costar in Glinda and Elphaba’s signature colors and a note that began with “pink goes good with green.”
“Congratulations Miss A, the part was made for you,” Erivo wrote. “I look forward to sharing this musical journey with you.”
Wickeddebuted on Broadway in October 2003 withIdina Menzel,Kristin ChenowethandJoel Greyas the original cast members playing Elphaba, Glinda and the Wizard, respectively.
The original Broadway production won three Tony Awards and six Drama Desk Awards, as well as a Grammy Award.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.Leon Bennett/WireImage; Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic
The musical film wasinitially set for releaseon Dec. 22, 2021, but it was pushed back due to the coronavirus pandemic. In February, Chuconfirmed he was set to helm the picture.
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“Most of my life I have felt out of place, weird and different,” Chu wrote at the time in a statement on Twitter. “I hid behind my camera because people liked to be filmed and I could disappear. I used my short films to wow people so I could feel valued. I felt GREEN in all the ways.”
getty images; IMDB
Erivo is a two-time Oscar nominee. She was nominated for an Emmy for her portrayal of Aretha Franklin inGenius: Aretha. She already has won both a Grammy and a Tony for her performance inThe Color Purple.
Grande is a multi-platinum pop star who boasts two Grammys. She began her career on Broadway, acting in the musical13in 2008 before joining Nickelodeon forVictoriousand the spinoffSam & Cat. In 2016, she starred as Penny Pingleton in the NBC television specialHairspray Live!.
For her part, Grande has long been open about her love for the musical, even performing several songs from the show over the years. In 2018, she sang avery impressive renditionof “The Wizard and I” in front of many of the musical’s biggest fans for its 15-year anniversary celebration,A Very Wicked Halloween.
source: people.com
