HANDPRINT ON MY HEART

Cynthia Erivo Reveals Secret Behind Emotional Moment in ‘Wicked: For Good’

For the film’s two leads, it was the perfect way to say goodbye.

It turns out that one of the most emotional moments in Wicked: For Good wasn’t even in the script; Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande simply improvised it. (WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD) As the sequel to the 2024 hit Wicked comes to a close, Erivo and Grande sing an emotional rendition of the song “For Good.” After the song ends, the two have a hurried, heartbreaking goodbye, where Glinda questions what is happening. “That wasn’t scripted,” Erivo told TODAY.com. “I said, ‘Don’t worry, everything’s going to be fine’—not scripted.” She also revealed that the “I love yous” exchanged between the pair were improvised as well. “That was something that we—that happened,” she added. “All of that was sort of what she and I found in the room.” To Erivo, it was a chance for their characters to part ways, as well as an opportunity for the actors to bid farewell to the roles they had been cast in four years earlier. “I think both of us were just figuring out how each of our characters would actually say goodbye,” she said. Erivo also praised the film’s director Jon M. Chu, who “didn’t stop” the two leads and allowed them to figure it out themselves. “Even through the song, there wasn’t much direction,” Erivo said. “He just let us sing to one another. Tell each other the truth.”