Ariana Grande Receives First Oscar Nomination For ‘Wicked’ and Cynthia Erivo Makes Academy History
Ariana Grande received her first Oscar nomination for her role as Glinda in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Wicked. She was nominated in the category of Best Supporting Actress. Additionally, Grande’s castmate Cynthia Erivo was nominated for Best Actress for the role of Elphaba, making Oscar history in the process.
This is Ariana Grande’s first Oscar nomination
Bowen Yang, Ariana Grande’s Wicked co-star, and Rachel Sennott announced the Oscar nominations on Jan. 23, 2025. Grande’s category includes fellow actors Monica Barbaro (A Complete Unknown), Felicity Jones (The Brutalist), Isabella Rossellini (Conclave), and Zoe Saldana (Emilia Pérez).
Grande worked tirelessly for over a decade to land the role of Glinda in the movie adaptation of Wicked. She first auditioned for the role at age 20 and eventually landed the role on her fifth attempt.
“She auditioned many times,” Wicked director Jon M. Chu recalled during a Vanity Fair interview. “I sort of didn’t want to believe that she could do this. It seems almost too easy to say, ‘Oh, Ariana Grande.’ [But] every time she came in, she was the most interesting person. You just couldn’t take your eyes away.”
However, just because Grande was so passionate about winning the coveted role, that didn’t mean she was beyond helping her fellow actors who were also auditioning. “I was trying my very best to be 100 percent transparent with everyone,” she told Vanity Fair.
“Like, ‘This is my tea. This is what I’m singing. I’m going in on the 13th. I love you. Text me after.'”
Cynthia Erivo makes Oscars history with second Best Actress nomination for ‘Wicked’
Cynthia Erivo made Oscars history with her nomination for the role of Elphaba Thropp in Wicked. This is her second nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture. She was nominated alongside Karla Sofía Gascón (Emilia Pérez), Mikey Madison (Anora), Demi Moore (The Substance), and Fernanda Torres (I’m Still Here).
Additionally, Erivo was previously recognized for the 2019 film Harriet, both in the Best Actress and Best Song (“Stand Up”) categories. Her Wicked nomination means Erivo joins Viola Davis as only the second Black woman to receive multiple nominations in the lead actress category.
However, Halle Berry remains the only Black woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress. She won for her performance in 2001’s Monster’s Ball.
What other nominations did ‘Wicked’ receive?
Wicked received a total of 10 Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Sound, and Best Visual Effects.
A second installment of Wicked will be released on Nov. 21, 2025, titled Wicked: For Good.
Conan O’Brien hosts the 97th Oscar ceremony. It airs on Sunday, March 2, 2025, beginning at 7 p.m. ET from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California.
