A throwaway quip about Glinda's sexuality has reignited intense online speculation that Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are more than friends, a surge driven as much by viral clips and fan theories as by ambiguous comments from both actresses.
At a recent public appearance, Grande joked that her Wicked character 'might be a little in the closet', a line captured in an Instagram reel that quickly circulated across social platforms. That clip, combined with decades-old fan shipping, Erivo's openness about her queerness, and third-party satire, has produced a new wave of rumours claiming the co-stars are romantically involved.
Remarks at a Public Event That Sparked a Storm
Grande's line, 'Glinda might be a little in the closet', first re-surfaced in press reporting during the Wicked promotional tour and was widely reported by trade outlets as off-the-cuff commentary about her character rather than a personal revelation.
The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard both ran transcripts and context around the exchange, which featured playful banter about the on-screen relationship between Glinda and Elphaba.
A short Instagram reel of Grande making the quip was reposted by fans and meme accounts, where it was stripped of surrounding context and appended to speculative captions about the actresses' private lives. That reposting accelerated the spread of rumours, turning a promotional aside into a purported scoop. The original Instagram reel remains publicly viewable.
Fan Speculation, Satire Pages and the Misinformation Chain
The fan community around Wicked, a franchise with a long history of 'Gelphie' shipping (Elphaba + Glinda), has repeatedly elevated small moments into large narratives. This time, the viral reel collided with an opportunistic satirical story and social posts that framed the actresses as using a novel label ('non-demi-curious semi-binary'), a term with no recognised meaning and attributed to neither star.
Cynthia Erivo has publicly spoken about her sexuality and coming-out experience. In British Vogue's August 2022 'Pride' issue, she discussed identifying as bisexual/queer and the complexities of sharing that publicly; she has since emphasised keeping private details private in interviews. Those are matters of record and central to why fan speculation often assumes intimacy where none has been stated.
Ariana Grande's personal life is also a matter of public record: since 2023, she has been publicly linked with and was later confirmed to be dating fellow Wicked cast member Ethan Slater, a fact reported repeatedly in mainstream coverage and corroborated by interviews with sources close to the couple. That timeline complicates claims that Grande and Erivo might be romantically involved.
Both actresses have defended boundaries around their private lives in recent interviews. Erivo has said she is 'very tight-lipped' about relationships and gives enough of herself in her work; Grande has likewise pushed back on speculative narratives when they arise.
Queer Visibility and Online Lore
The episode is a case study in how modern celebrity culture distils promotional banter into identity narratives that can overshadow lived truth. For queer fans, the desire for visible representation is vital and often fuels joyful speculation. For the subjects of that speculation, however, there are reputational and privacy consequences when off-hand comments morph into claimed personal revelations.
While fan speculation often springs from affection, the spread of unverified claims can produce tangible effects, skewing public discourse, misrepresenting individuals' personal lives, and prompting unnecessary media cycles. Journalists and platforms both play a role in slowing that spread by foregrounding primary documents and first-hand statements.
This round of rumours is not the first time Wicked's fandom has blurred performer and character, nor will it be the last.
