Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo's Reported 'Wicked' Salaries Have Raised a Few Eyebrows

Many years we have waited for Wicked: Part One to appear, and on Friday, Nov. 22 (and Nov. 21 in most theaters), the movie adaptation of the smash Broadway musical finally arrived. I'm not going to spoil anything, but as someone who ran to see it during its premiere weekend, I'll say it was well worth the wait.

The film, starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, and Ariana Grande as Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, exceeded opening expectations by earning a record-breaking $114 million during its premiere.

Cynthia and Ariana will reprise their roles in Wicked: Part Two, and based on the first part's box office success, will see another hefty payday for their hard work. But how much were the actors played to get witch-y with it? Here's the scoop on Ariana and Cynthia's reported Wicked salaries.

When the Wicked cast was announced in 2022, many people following Ariana's career knew how badly the Grammy-winning singer wanted to play Glinda. Before she booked the role, she performed various Wicked songs, including her rendition of "The Wizard and I" at Wicked's 15h anniversary show. However, despite playing Glinda being her longtime dream, she was reportedly all about her business while negotiating her Wicked salary.

According to Showbiz Galore, Ariana made $15 million playing Glinda. While discussing the report on Stylecaster, the writer said she earned more money than anyone in the cast, including right-hand co-star Cynthia.

Cynthia reportedly earned $1 million from her role as Elphaba in Wicked, which is relatively low compared to Ariana's Wicked salary. Though they both were able to have their fair share of screen time, Stylecaster reports that their pay discrepancy could be due to their net worths. Cynthia. She reportedly earns $3 million from her stage and screen roles, while Ariana is worth $230 million from her work as a singer and actor.

Many familiar with Cynthia and Ariana's careers found their reported Wicked paydays inconceivable. On social media, fans debated whether the estimated earnings were accurate. While most fans on Reddit felt Ariana likely made more money than Cynthia, they didn't believe the significant difference in their earnings made any sense. Others, however, felt Ariana's star power resulted in her ultimately earning more than her co-star.

"These are completely made up," one fan said. "The source of these 'rumors' made the typo of saying Cynthia got $2 million- but in the list saying she made $1 million. Either way, it’s all fake."

"Given that her costar is one of the biggest pop stars and the one selling tickets, I'd say this seems very accurate," another mentioned. "Erivo is an Oscar nominee but far from being a powerhouse name with public recognition. Goldblum has no Oscar and I'm not a bit surprised he's commanding a higher salary."

Neither Cynthia nor Ariana has disclosed their Wicked earnings to the public.