One thing that many actors love about their careers is the ability to learn new things to become their character. Mila Kunis learned ballet for “Black Swan,” while Margot Robbie learned to ice skate for “I, Tonya.”
It may not seem like Cynthia Erivo or Ariana Grande had to learn too many new skills for “Wicked” and the upcoming “Wicked: For Good.” After all, both are already popular singers. But there is one thing that the former coach of “The Voice” had a lot of fun learning: wand tricks. During an appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” she showed off her impeccable technique.
Ariana Grande Admits Wand Got Stuck in Wig During ‘Wicked’ Fight Scene Rehearsals
Fallon brings up a fight scene between Grande’s Glinda and Erivo’s Elphaba, comparing it to the video game “Mortal Kombat.” He compliments her on her “impressive” and “crazy wand skills.”
“It got caught in my wig a few times,” she admitted. That’s not in the movie, but it was quite a reset — took a long time.”
Suddenly, Fallon pulled a replica of Glinda’s wand from behind him and asked her if she could show them some of her wand skills.
“I can try,” she replied. “I’m a little out of practice; it’s been like three and a half years.” Despite her worry that she was going to take someone’s eye out, she gracefully and expertly twirled the wand to the delight of Fallon and the audience.
Ariana Grande Praises Decision to Split ‘Wicked’ Into Two Films
While initially conceived as one film, “Wicked” became two when director Jon M. Chu realized that too much would have to be condensed or deleted to make it work.
“With more space, we can tell the story of ‘Wicked’ as it was meant to be told while bringing even more depth and surprise to the journeys for these beloved characters,” Chu wrote on Twitter at the time.
“It was interesting to watch it for the first time so many years after we had finished, because we shot both simultaneously,” Grande told Fallon. “So in my head, they’re both one story and one experience.”
“They separated it into two because it’s just so much information,” she added. “I’m grateful that they did that because I feel like you really get to know Glinda the way that I got to know her, and to love her in order to play her. You get to expand upon her backstory a bit. And Jon M. Chu just had the right, the very right instincts. There’s no one else like him.”
“He’s truly the best there is, and his choices in this are so, so beautiful,” she added.
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