EXCLUSIVE: Ethan Slater knows why ‘Wicked’ co-stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are always crying
Ethan Slater is aware his “Wicked” co-stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo keep crying on the movie’s press tour.
“They’re so funny,” he tells TODAY.com, eyes crinkling with genuine affection.
“They’re both like, after a full day of junkets, ‘Well, we cried 100 times again. Everyone must be getting so annoyed.’ But I think it comes from a really genuine place,” he continues.
Slater, a Broadway performer-turned movie star, appears in the two-part “Wicked” adaptation as a slightly hapless Munchkinlander named Boq. “Wicked” is based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 re-imagining of L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.”
The lead-up to part one, out in theaters Nov. 22, has been marked by Erivo and Grande’s emotional reminiscing about the making of the movie. Their interviews, which often end in tears, have been turned into viral clips and parodies.
Erivo plays Elphaba, who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West, and Grande is Glinda the Good. But in the timeline of “Wicked,” the two are roommates who start off as enemies and then become best friends.
Slater says the press tour is emotional for Grande and Erivo because their real-life friendship mimics Elphaba and Glinda’s.
“I think it’s an emotional process to dive into characters who go through such a journey,” Slater tells TODAY.com. “It’s been a really long and intense process. When you do that, you really bond with the people you’re around.”
Grande and Erivo’s isn’t the only love story to be born from “Wicked”: Slater and Grande began dating after meeting while filming and have shared some moments together on the red carpet.
Despite that, Slater says Grande and Erivo “kind of are soul mates.”
“Their friendship is really real and really deep and really informed by the work that they did together. I think they’re getting to talk about and getting to reflect on it while they’re still in the midst of it,” he says.
During an interview with Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie that aired on TODAY Nov. 14, Erivo and Grande spoke about their tears.
“We’ve definitely cried through interviews,” Erivo said.
“Yes, we’re sorry. Much to the annoyance of many,” Grande said.
“We can’t help it really, it just happens. … It’s been such a long journey,” Erivo said. “For both of us, it’s a huge dream come true.”
Slater tells TODAY.com that he, too, has been emotional during the press tour.
He says he choked up during an interview with co-star Marissa Bode, who appears as Elphaba’s younger sister, Nessarose. Bode has made history as the first actor who uses a wheelchair to play Nessarose.
The interviewer brought up a comment on a post about Bode. “One of the comments said, like, ‘Marissa, you’re an inspiration. I’m a wheelchair user who has always wanted to be an actor, and seeing you do this, I feel like I can pursue my dreams.’ The importance of representation, on top of her beautiful performance in the movie, was a really moving thing,” he says.
“It’s beautiful to see the impact that has and be part of that storyline with her. It’s an honor.”
