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Cynthia Erivo on Bringing Her Black Queer Identity to ‘Wicked’: ‘It’s a Love Letter to Everyone Who Feels Different’
'Wicked' star Cynthia Erivo reflects on the significance of Elphaba being played by a Black queer woman.
“You’re one of the first sets of people to come watch this film and I wanted to say thank you personally.” Erivo kept her remarks short and sweet, closing with a wink to one of Elphaba’s most famous lines from the hit Broadway musical-turned-Universal movie: “Pink and green goes well together.” It’s the kind of distinction that shouldn’t matter, but considering “Wicked” is an allegory for the arbitrary nature of racism and discrimination, there’s something particularly impactful about the character being portrayed by a person of color who is intimately aware of Elphaba’s oppression and her daily battle against it. One of the most impactful additions to the movie version of “Wicked” is expanding Elphaba’s backstory, so audiences bear witness to the bullying and rejection she faced as a young girl (played by 10-year-old Karis Musongole).
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