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Ariana Grande is taking it back to September 2022, when she and co-star Cynthia Erivo were in the midst of rehearsals for Wicked: Part One. In a new behind-the-scenes video shared by the actress, she and Erivo can be seen rehearsing Glinda’s iconic ‘Popular’ from the film, complete with choreography. Check it out below.
The well-known musical number occurs during Glinda and Elphaba’s time at Shiz University, as Glinda attempts to help her unpopular roommate better fit in. In the first part of the Wicked movie, Glinda’s musical number got a new twist when the filmmakers decided to adjust the song with a slightly longer ending that utilizes key changes and more of Ariana Grande’s soprano range. Grande previously told Em Rusciano of The Emsolation Podcast that the ending choreography of the number was a last-minute choice.
“Alice [Brooks] and Jon [M. Chu] were both like, ‘We have to make use of this gorgeous hallway. And Chris [Scott], our brilliant choreographer…just choreographed it and spontaneously taught me two days before we shot it. And that’s how we decided to use that ending of the song,” Grande shared. Listen to it below.
Part One of the Wicked movie received 10 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, with Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande nominated for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress, respectively. The film won 2 awards at the ceremony: Best Costume Design and Best Production Design.
Wicked: For Good will arrive in theaters on November 21, 2025, and stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, Ariana Grande as Glinda, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Jeff Goldblum as The Wizard, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Ethan Slater as Boq, and Marissa Bode as Nessarose.
