Universal forced to debunk Wicked salary rumours amid sing-along debate

Such was the force of Wicked rumours on social media that the studio, Universal Pictures, was compelled to step in and debunk the myths.

Misinformation had spread on Reddit that Ariana Grade was paid 15 times more than her co-star Cynthia Erivo. The rumours were that Grande’s salary was $US15 million to Erivo’s $US1 million, even though Erivo has top billing.

Universal Studios said in a statement to Deadline, “Reports of pay disparity between Cynthia and Ariana are completely false and based on internet fodder.

“The women received equal pay for their work on Wicked.”

Erivo is a graduate of London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art whose stage productions include The Colour Purple, Henry IV and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Her screen work includes Widows, The Outsider, Genius and Bad Times at El Royale. She won a Tony in 2016 and was nominated for two Oscars for Harriet, in both Best Actress and Original Song.

Grande is a popular recording artist who got her break as a teen on Nickelodeon shows. Wicked is her first significant film role. She has won two Grammys from 18 nominations.

Wicked is based on the very popular Broadway musical which itself was drawn from Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel, a reworking of The Wizard of Oz character The Wicked Witch of the West.

Erivo plays Elphaba, the renamed Wicked Witch of the West, while Grande is Galinda, who later becomes Glinda the Good.

The first half of the two-part film series was released last week and broke global box office records for highest-grossing movie based on a Broadway musical. In Australia, it made $8.93 million in its opening weekend, the second highest for the year behind Deadpool & Wolverine.

With a combined production budget between the two films (Part Two will be released in late 2025) of $US300 million, Part One is sitting on $US164 million after less than a week.

A massive marketing push which included 450 brand partners including Starbucks, Lexus and department stores such as the US’s Bloomingdales and the UK’s Liberty, has seen Wicked dominate cultural conversation and take over social media feeds.

Fans were also encouraged to get into the spirit by dressing up in green and pink, colours associated with Elphaba and Galinda.

But the fever has also led to debates over whether it was acceptable for enthusiasts, especially those with an existing relationship to the stage production, to sing aloud during sessions at the cinema.

Dwayne Johnson, whose animated musical Moana 2 opens tomorrow, picked a side when he said fans who have paid “your hard earned money for a ticket, and you’ve gone into a musical and you’re into it, sing”.

There are just as many who would strongly disagree, who don’t want to hear off-key seatmates try to belt out “Defying Gravity” over Erivo’s professional vocals.

American cinema chain AMC explicitly asked moviegoers to not sing along in the theatre.

Sing-along screenings for Wicked have been scheduled in the US and in Singapore.

There have previously been sing-along screenings in Australia for Frozen, Mary Poppins, Grease, Wish and The Greatest Showman.