Wicked nearly starred two A-List pop singers before Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo were cast
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Wicked, starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, is earning rave reviews, but at one point, the cast looked quite different—featuring two pop icons in key roles.
British filmmaker Stephen Daldry was originally set to direct the spectacle and had big plans to cast Lady Gaga as Elphaba and Shawn Mendes as Fiyero, according to a source who spoke to Page Six on Tuesday.
The Born This Way singer even met with the production team multiple times to discuss her take on the character.
'They had meetings, the two of them, about the character and who she would be. [Gaga] was essentially cast in his version, and then it fell through,' the insider revealed.
But Daldry’s vision never came to be—he left the project in 2020 due to scheduling conflicts.
Enter Jon M. Chu, who took over as director and reimagined the cast, ultimately bringing Erivo on as Elphaba, Grande as Glinda the Good Witch, and Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero.
Wicked, starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo , is earning rave reviews , but at one point, the cast looked quite different—featuring two pop icons in key roles
British filmmaker Stephen Daldry was originally set to direct the spectacle and had big plans to cast Lady Gaga as Elphaba and Shawn Mendes as Fiyero, according to a source who spoke to Page Six on Tuesday
And this cast is clearly a perfect fit for their roles, as DailyMail's Brian Viner puts it: 'Chu and the writers have enormous fun and are superbly served by the cast: Erivo and Grande are both pitch-perfect and altogether sensational.'
He added: '{Michelle] Yeoh, Bailey and Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard offer splendid support.'
Lady Gaga has since proved her acting chops in films like A Star is Born and the recent Joker sequel, where she shared the screen with Joaquin Phoenix.
As for Mendes, despite the early casting talks, he has yet to truly explore acting, keeping his focus squarely on his music career for now.
The casting news follows Erivo's Elle 2024 Women in Hollywood cover story, where she opened up about the 'hard' and 'vulnerable' conversations she and Ariana shared before working together on Wicked.
'I’ve gained a sister,' she said in Elle's 2024 Women in Hollywood portfolio. 'At this point, we speak almost every day. Both of us were blown away by how connected we were immediately.'
'I remember the first day we got to come together. It was at [director] Jon M. Chu’s house, and Stephen Schwartz [who wrote Wicked’s music and lyrics for both the OG Broadway musical and the film] was over.
'He played some songs for us, and we sang together for the first time. It worked. It was one of the most gratifying things to know that there was someone who was that open and available, because she was, and that meant I could be as well.
Enter Jon M. Chu, who took over as director and reimagined the cast, ultimately bringing Erivo on as Elphaba, Grande as Glinda the Good Witch, and Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero
And this cast is clearly a perfect fit for their roles, as DailyMail's Brian Viner puts it : 'Chu and the writers have enormous fun and are superbly served by the cast: Erivo and Grande are both pitch-perfect and altogether sensational'
Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey, Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, Bowen Yang, Karis Musongole and Bronwyn James attend the "Wicked: Part One" UK Premiere at The Royal Festival Hall on November 18, 2024 in London, England.
'We also had a beautiful relationship offscreen.'
During an interview with the New York Times, the pair said they would frequently spend their days off together — staying in at each other's homes, go shopping together and even getting tattoos.
On their connection and friendship, Ariana told the outlet: '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.'
'I'm really proud of us for how genuinely we took care of each other throughout this whole time,' she added.
Wicked hits theaters on Thursday.
