The very, very popular Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo have been cast as Glinda and Elphaba in Jon M. Chu’s film adaption of Wicked, the two leads have announced on Instagram. Chu was recently reported to take over the role of director in February 2021 when Stephen Daldry left the project last year. The film has not been given an updated release date. Grande and Erivo will both go back to their Broadway roots; Grande starred as Charlotte in 13 on Broadway when she was 15, and Erivo made her Broadway debut as Celie in The Color Purple in 2015. Grande has been making headlines as the newest judge on The Voice and for marrying her real-estate beau, Dalton Gomez. Grande also made her case to star in the film when she sang “The Wizard and I†for NBC’s A Very Wicked Halloween: Celebrating 15 Years on Broadway. Erivo released her debut album, Ch. 1 Vs. 1, this September and will be starring in the remake of Bette Middler’s The Rose. Erivo is also an Oscar away from becoming the youngest EGOT recipient ever.
The film adaption of Wicked has had a rocky yellow-brick road; it was first announced in 2012 but has faced several delays. However, with the announcement of the film’s leads, hopefully, a release date is just one short day away.