Contrary to Rumor, Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande Were Paid The Same For 'Wicked'

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Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are co-stars in Wicked, but just after the movie’s release, rumors started circulating on TikTok and Reddit claiming that Ariana was paid $15 million for the movie while Cynthia only made $1 million. Of course, those rumors sparked a lot of chatter across the internet.

However, according to a spokesperson from Universal, those claims are completely false. They confirmed that Erivo and Grande were paid the same salary for their roles. Multiple sources close to the situation also told The Hollywood Reporter that the two actresses received equal pay.

“Reports of pay disparity between Cynthia and Ariana are completely false and based on internet fodder. The women received equal pay for their work on Wicked,” Universal said in a statement.

British-born actress/singer Erivo and Grande, who rose to fame via Disney, have talked about their strong bond, both on and offscreen, during their press tour. What has generated even more speculation than their pay is that that two have shown up on multiple red carpets, looking thinner than they have before. The actresses brushed aside that speculation as well.

In a TikTok post last year, Grande told her fans, “You never know what someone is going through” and asked that they stop commenting on people’s bodies.

“Even if you are coming from a loving place and a caring place, that person probably is working on it or has a support system that they are working on it with,” Grande said. “So, be gentle with each other and with yourselves.”

Directed by John Chu, the Wicked movie is first part of the origin story of Glinda the Good Witch and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, characters originally written by L. Frank Baum for The Wizard of Oz. Wicked was turned into a stage musical in 2003. The first part ends with “Defying Gravity,” a big moment in the Broadway show, and the plan is to continue the story with a second part. Chu explained that splitting the film into two movies was important for balancing the storytelling.

Since its release on Nov. 22, Wicked has earned over $359M at the box office, already surpassing other Broadway-to-screen adaptations like Chicago and Grease. The second movie, Wicked Part Two, is set to release on Nov. 21, 2025.