Ariana Grande had a Cinderella moment last night, wearing a white sheer corset gown by Vivienne Westwood with a full skirt to the WSJ Innovator Awards. She accessorized with Swarovski jewels and styled her hair up in a bun, and she was all smiles as she posed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City alongside her Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo.
Grande and Erivo recently opened up to Vanity Fair about how they purposely sought to be friends while filming the musical fantasy film. Knowing that the original Glinda and Elphaba, Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel, sparked rumors of a backstage rivalry during their Broadway run, the two film stars went to great lengths to nurture their relationship.
“We communicated like the fucking champions of communication of the world,” Grande said. “I’m so grateful for it because we kind of looked at this and we said, ‘Oh, that’s not an option. That’s not going to happen to us.’”
“We needed real connection, and we needed to lead this with love—even in the moments that are supposed to be fraught with tension within the piece,” Erivo added. She shared that they learned together how to navigate hard moments on set. “There are days when she’s gonna need space, and there are days when I’m gonna need space,” Erivo said. “But because we love each other very dearly, it’s okay.”
“I think we’ve done a really beautiful job of…oh my God, sorry,” Grande said, pausing to hold back tears. “We both really took the time to get to know the other person and where we’ve been. What our little wounds are. What our little things are.”
Wicked – Part 1 hits theaters on Nov. 22, 2024.
Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.