Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are reaching the end of the yellow brick road.
The Wicked costars—who play Glinda and Elphaba, respectively, in the film—stepped out for the premiere of the musical's sequel, Wicked: For Good, in New York City on Nov. 17. And while walking the red carpet for the event, the duo got candid about the "overwhelming gratitude" they feel over wrapping up the Wicked story.
"It's been such an incredible ride and an incredible experience to create with people we love so much and respect so much creatively, but also who just have such great hearts," Ariana exclusively told E! News’ Justin Sylvester, adding that she's also excited for fans to "finally be able to get the full story" and the "full arc of these women that we love so much and have spent these years with."
"It's almost five years that we've spent with them," she continued. "So, for them to finally be getting the full picture and to know the secrets we've known all along is very exciting."
But Ariana noted that she and Cynthia—who opted not to speak during the joint interview due to being on vocal rest—still have lots to look forward to, including a Grammys 2026 nomination for their Wicked soundtrack collaboration "Defying Gravity."
"It's so incredible," Ariana gushed. "It's such an honor to have it be recognized, especially even a year after the first film, and we're just so honored to have that moment together to be acknowledged."
Of course, Ariana, 32, and Cynthia, 38, weren't the only ones who made heads turn at the Wicked: For Good premiere. Jonathan Bailey (who plays Prince Fiyero), Ethan Slater (Boq), Jeff Goldblum (The Wizard) and Bowen Yang (Pfannee) all made jaws drop in their magical looks for the occasion as well.
For Ariana, developing a friendship with the entire cast has been one of the most fulfilling experiences of her career. In fact, the "Positions" singer said she and Cynthia intentionally went into filming the franchise with the goal of spending quality time together off camera.
"It's something that was important to us from the very beginning—to build something real and to know that we could have a safe space in each other for this journey because it was going to be tremendous," Ariana told NPR in a February interview. "We knew it was going to be years and years of some of the hardest work of our lives, and it's something that we started building from the day we were cast."
And Cynthia has echoed that sentiment, describing the R.E.M. Beauty founder as a "sister."
“We were lucky because we got to meet each other on this project, but when the project goes away, we're still good friends," she previously told E! News. "It's not this that's keeping us together.”
And while Cynthia is sad to be reaching the end of the yellow brick road with her castmates in Wicked: For Good, she 's excited to be delivering fans a follow-up film that goes above and beyond expectations.
“I’m quite excited for people to see how far these characters have come and what the progress has been between the time you left them and where they are now,” the Tony winner told Vanity Fair in an interview published Oct. 30. “It’s a big journey."
For more times Cynthia and Ariana stunned while promoting Wicked, keep reading.
(E! and Universal are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)
Ariana Grande
In custom Schiaparelli.
Cynthia Erivo
In Balenciaga.
Jonathan Bailey
In Loro Piana.
Michelle Yeoh
In Givenchy and Mikimoto jewelry.
Jeff Goldblum
In Prada and Jacob & Co. timepiece.
Ethan Slater
In Tanner Fletcher.
Marissa Bode
Bowen Yang
In Simone Rocha and Jimmy Choo shoes.
Bronwyn James
In Marques Almeida.
Colman Domingo
In Dolce & Gabbana.
Scarlett Spears
Jon M. Chu
Nina Dobrev
In archive Narciso Rodriguez.
Megan Hilty
In Pamella Roland.
Claire Danes
Trisha Paytas
In Garo Sparo.
Constance Wu
In Cult Gaia.
Natasha Bedingfield
In Christian Siriano.
Jimmy Fallon
Auli'i Cravalho
In Mitiliane Couture.
David Burtka & Harper Burtka-Harris
Harper in Alice + Olivia.
Gayle King
Beanie Feldstein & Bonnie-Chance Roberts
Beanie in Simone Rocha.
Justine Lupe
Phillipa Soo & Andrew Chappelle
Ariana Biermann & Gia Giudice
Gia in L'idee.
Hasan Minhaj & Beena Patel
Melanie C & Chris Dingwall
Patricia Clarkson
Remi Bader
In Rodarte.