Cynthia Erivo has spoken out after her quick defense of Ariana Grande during a fan encounter at the Singapore premiere of Wicked: For Good.
“I wasn’t really thinking,” Erivo, 38, told Today on Thursday, November 20. “I just wanted to make sure my friend was safe.”
While Erivo and Grande, 32, walked the red carpet at the international red carpet premiere, a man rushed the front of the line and toward the pop star. Both Erivo and costar Michelle Yeoh quickly pulled Grande away from the individual.
“I’m sure he didn’t mean us harm, but you never know with those things,” Erivo said. “I wanted to make sure that she was OK. That was my first instinct.”
Ariana Grande Credits Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo for Helping ‘Heal’ Her
Grande has not publicly addressed the incident. The man, later identified as Johnson Wen, was subsequently charged with being a public nuisance and sentenced to nine days in jail.
Grande and Erivo star as witches Glinda and Elphaba, respectively, in the two-part Wicked movie musical. The films, directed by Jon M. Chu, are adapted from the bestselling stage production of the same name about the two Wizard of Oz witches’ origin story.
Filming both Wicked and Wicked: For Good also fostered a close bond between Erivo and Grande in real life.
“This is a long-lasting friendship for us,” Erivo said on Thursday’s Today broadcast. “We’re kind of like sisters at this moment.”
She continued, “I think we’ve both learned from each other and given each other some really, really beautiful gifts. We’ve really looked after each other through this.”
Erivo and Grande even got matching “For Good” tattoos commemorating their roles — and their iconic Wicked duet.
“I think that was one of my most cherished parts of this experience: I felt held and like I had a friend every step of the way,” Grande told The New York Times in 2024. “I’m really proud of us for how genuinely we took care of each other throughout this whole time.”
Grande echoed her sentiments ahead of For Good.
“To be able to act with this one and to share a space and to be a scene partner with you was the greatest privilege of my professional life,” Grande said on Today earlier this month, referring to Erivo. “Let alone sing with her, the greatest singer in the entire world. I’m spoiled for life.”
Wicked’s Marissa Bode Shares Lessons From Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande
For Good also stars Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Ethan Slater and Marissa Bode.
“I am very, very nervous — especially because I know a lot of people express their love for that song,” Bode, 25, exclusively told Us Weekly in November about fans watching her character Nessarose’s breakout solo. “It’s not on the original Broadway album, I believe, and it is on this [soundtrack], so there’s a lot of pressure there, for sure. I hope I did it justice, and I hope audiences enjoy [the performance].”
Bode, who uses a wheelchair, also admired how the film highlighted representation for her character.
“When you’re dealing with a movie that’s already so fantastical, doing something not only that is a little bit healthier in the perception of disabled people — while at the same time taking the magic, honestly, to a whole other level,” Bode told Us. “She is literally in the air and flying. I am happy with the change … what she’s asking from her sister in the second film. It’s different from the stage musical in terms of her pleading to be fixed and healed. That can be a disabled person’s story, but it’s not all of our stories.”
Wicked: For Good hits theaters Friday, November 21.
