Ariana Grande Is ‘Still Recovering’ After Filming ‘Wicked: For Good’

Ariana Grande is teasing the follow-up to her Oscar-nominated performance as Glinda in “Wicked.”

Grande, who will reprise her role for Part Two titled “Wicked: For Good,” told The Hollywood Reporter that the second installment is darker than the first film. “I’m still recovering,” Grande said.

She and co-star Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba, will both return for the next feature, which will be released in November.

Grande also recently said during a SAG Awards Conversation with fellow Best Supporting Actress nominees Monica Barbaro and Zoe Saldaña that she has long contemplated how “Wicked” concluded. The iconic song “Defying Gravity” caps off the first film, as Elphaba leaves Oz and Glinda opts to stay despite unmasking the corruption at the core of the city. “I think about this all the time, like if I had gone with Elphaba. … First of all, I would have died immediately. I would have fallen off,” Grande quipped, before explaining her character’s decision.

“I feel there are so many people who think that she’s making the decision out of not being brave enough. I understand why there are people who want Glinda to have gone with her, because what she’s doing in that moment is so incredibly brave and it’s this response to this corrupt system that has othered people and has enslaved animals. It’s built on lies and deceit and it’s horrible,” Grande said. “What Elphaba is doing is incredibly brave and I think people think Glinda stays because she’s not brave enough or because she’s comfortable being a part of the system that has ultimately benefitted her. I do think that part of the reason why she doesn’t go is kind of the opposite. … I think she sees clearly in that moment that the only way she and Elphaba would be able to make a change would be to stay.”

She added that parting ways with Elphaba is actually the biggest “act of unconditional love” Glinda could have done. That love was evident on set with the ensemble cast and crew: Grande told IndieWire that the entire production was meticulously curated for the best vibes.

“Every single person involved led with that same intentionality and thoughtfulness,” she said. “And nothing wasn’t thought of. Every page on the books that are on the table that you don’t even get to see opened, they’re written about Ozian history. And the journals next to our beds are filled with scribbles. It’s a real world when we all care as much as everyone else. And we all walk into the space with the awareness that everyone feels this same responsibility. I’m not alone in that.”

Grande added, “It’s like, ‘Where have you been my whole life, Cynthia?’ Hello, I made a real sister in her. And in Jon, that’s my brother for life.”