British actress Cynthia Erivo said feeling like an outsider and “not fitting in” drew her to the role of Elphaba in the upcoming blockbuster Wicked. Erivo stars alongside US pop singer Ariana Grande as Glinda in the film version of the hit Broadway and West End musical. Advertisement The two-part film explores the friendship between the pair before they become estranged in the classic stories by L Frank Baum, in which Elphaba is known as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda as the Good Witch of the South.
“When I first saw it a good few years ago, I felt like I recognised something in the character, the feeling of being on the outside, being a bit different, not fitting in,” actress Erivo said of her character on US chat show The View. Advertisement “And so I guess there was something about it that felt familiar, and I felt like it was important to be a part of that storytelling, because I could understand it well.” The 37-year-old said she has always felt as though she was “different”.
“I think I’m a bit of an odd one out often. I walk into the room, and especially in this particular field of work, I’m different,” she said. “There aren’t many who look like me.
I stick out, I’m an odd one out.” Advertisement Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande arrive at the premiere of Wicked. Photo: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Erivo said being different means that “the space isn’t always there for you”, explaining that it has “taken a lot to get h.
