Pop superstar Ariana Grande has claimed that her character in Wicked has lesbian tendencies, adding that “every day in the Emerald City is a Pride parade.” Ariana Grande made the claims in an interview this week with The Gay Times.
When asked if her character Glinda and Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) could be a romantic couple, she replied: “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with celebrating the deep connection that both of them have.
I think they do have a real relationship, it is true love, which is probably why people are shipping it because what they build with each other is an unbreakable bond.”
She said they provide “such a safe space for one another, which is what all relationships should be. So, you know, whether it’s romantic or platonic — Glinda might be a little in the closet — but if there were a time, you never know. Give it a little more time.”
In the interview, Grande played up Wicked’s well-established gay appeal.
“Every day in the Emerald City is a Pride parade, right?” she said. “Even the chickens… those chickens are gay.” She also described Peter Dinklage’s character Dr. Dillamond, Shiz University’s goat history professor, as a “gay icon.”
Wicked, based on the enduring Broadway musical, opened Friday and is expected to be an enormous box-office hit for Universal, which has been planning the blockbuster for years. The movie is a two-parter, with the second half set to be released next year.
