Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo have provided no shortage of fun moments on the press tour for Wicked. One of the most notable moments came from their interview with Out magazine’s Tracy E. Gilchrist, who caught the two women by surprise by telling them that she’s seen people on social media “holding space” for the lyrics of the climactic musical number of the film, “Defying Gravity.” The conversation became the origins of a viral meme as people joked about what it meant to “hold space” for a song that’s been out for over 20 years.
In the original clip, Grande and Erivo seemed to have been taken aback by the gravity of what they were just told. However, in a new interview with Variety, they revealed that their reaction was mainly just that of confusion.
Cynthia: I didn’t know that was happening
— kacchi (@kacchixx) December 7, 2024
Ariana: I didn’t know WHAT was happening https://t.co/6lY1rAUsId
"I didn't know what any part of it meant," Grande says in the newly released clip as director Jon M. Chu laughs in the background. "I didn't understand the first sentence, and then I definitely didn't understand how you responded," she says as she points to Erivo. Grande explains that she just wanted to be there for her friend because "something big was happening," so she grabbed Erivo's index finger to comfort her because she looked like she was about to cry.
Erivo shared that she too was a bit confused after a few minutes during the original interview. "She said she had seen it because she was in queer media," Erivo said in the clip. "I honestly didn't know what that meant, and am I also in queer media? Work. Let's both be there."
At the same time, Grande is wholeheartedly agreeing with her.
The clip ends with Grande and Erivo agreeing that the moment they shared was "beautiful" and Grande said she felt "really relieved the world had the same reaction with this moment that I did."
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