Ariana Grande Credits Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo For Helping ‘Heal’ Her

Ariana Grande credits her Bad costar Cynthia Erivo helping her to “heal certain parts” of herself.

Grande, 31, and Erivo, 37, opened up about their friendship in an interview The New York Times published on Wednesday 6 November.

“I feel really inspired by her fierce ability to be honest and protect herself,” said Grande, who plays Glinda in Erivo’s Elphaba. “Just by being around her, I’ve become more of an ally to myself when I used to give up on myself, and I really credit that to our friendship.”

Tearing up, the “Thank U, Next” singer continued, “Wow, I literally promised myself in the car that I wouldn’t do that. Spending this time with her and also with a character that believes in herself, I feel like I was able to heal certain parts of me that were in deep need of having a friend like Cynthia and a friend like Glinda.”

Grande revealed that she is recovering people she pleases.

“Someone would punch me in the face and I’d say, ‘I’m sorry.’ I get silly, I do a little bit, but yes, I found it hard to listen to the voices that I knew were real for fear of being judged,” she said. “And I think that’s a very beautiful thing to overcome.”

Grande has endured many ups and downs throughout her successful pop career, including the bombing of her Manchester concert in 2017, the death of her ex-boyfriend Mac Miller a year later and her divorce in 2023 from her ex-husband Dalton Gomez after two years of marriage. (Last summer it was reported that Grande and Bad costar Ethan Slater have been dating since her split from Gomez, 29, and Slater’s split from her ex-wife Lily J. Both actors denied cheating on their then-partners amid widespread speculation.)

Grande has also endorsed Erivo.

Erivo, speaking at Timesstated of Grande, “I don’t know if she knows, but she definitely changed my life. I think it was one of the first times that someone looked at me and was just happy with what was there. I would tell her what I wanted for myself as a musician and she just believed it, I think more than I did. I don’t think until I met her I was like, “Oh, I think I can have what I want in this life and I can have it my way.”

Erivo said that Grande “taught me how to handle this crazy beast that turns out to be a success, because I had a measure of it, but this is new. He really holds my hand the whole way and wants it for me as much as I want it for myself.”

Bad opens in theaters on Friday, November 22 and will be released in two parts, the second of which will open in November 2025. Based on the beloved Broadway show, the film musical follows the story of the Witches of Oz as they go from rival college roommates unlikely friends.

The films also star Slater as Boq, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morible, Jeff Goldblum as a Wizard, Marissa Bode as Nessarose and Peter Dinklage as Doctor Dillamond.

Grande called auditioning for the role of Glinda “a challenge” while appearing on the Friday, Nov. 1, episode. The “Sentimental Man” podcast.. “It has to be earned. Anything on this scale, being a part of anyone, is not given just because they know about one thing,” he shared. “So it’s fun to have the challenge of redefining people’s perception and doing the work to win your way back into the other spaces.”