Why Ariana Grande is always touching ‘Wicked’ costar Cynthia Erivo

Ariana Grande is very proud of her “touchy” relationship with Wicked costar Cynthia Erivo.

Nearly a year after the duo went viral for their hilariously meme-able finger-holding moment, the Eternal Sunshine artist is addressing the fact that the costars have a very touchy-feely friendship.

“It was really hard work, you know? To kind of take care of each other through this incredibly huge thing that was making Wicked,” Grande told Amy Poehler during a recent visit to her Good Hang podcast. “I really wanted to be safe in each other, you know? I kind of said, ‘Hey, we’re getting to know each other, we’re gonna learn a lot about each other very quickly, I want you to know there’s nothing that we can’t talk about. You don’t have to face something alone. If you need help with something, I am on your side already.'”

Poehler then voiced admiration for the way the Wicked stars physically check in with each other, while making the rounds to market the movie. 

“It’s really sweet how you touch each other,” she began. “You like to touch—”

Before she could finish, Grande burst out into laughter over the phrasing and Poehler soon joined in. “In a non-sexual way,” the Parks and Rec alum clarified, chuckling. “In a loving way of supporting each other. You like to hold each other’s hands and be there. It’s very sweet. You like to do that with people, am I wrong?”

“I do,” Grande agreed. “I channel a lot of energy through my hands. I’m always holding a hand. I’m always squeezing something. I’m always reaching for something.”

She explained, “It’s often who I’m with. I like to channel support or energy or whatever. I didn’t even notice that it was a thing about me until that thing happened.”

The incident in question, a defining moment of the first Wicked press tour, occurred during an interview with queer journalist and Out reporter Tracy Gilchrist who told the stars that “people have been taking the lyrics of ‘Defying Gravity’ and really holding space with that and feeling power in that.” 

“I didn’t know that was happening,” Erivo responded. “That’s really powerful.”

She then turned to look at the silently nodding Grande, who reached out to grip and then stroke one of her co-star’s fingers.

“I didn’t know what the f–k was going on,” Grande now tells Poehler of the viral moment. “I knew it was tender and beautiful, and I just wanted to be supportive… It felt sweet. It felt beautiful.”

Grande previously voiced some confusion over the incident while unpacking it a month after it occurred, following the wave of memes and jokes that followed. “I didn’t know what any part of it meant,” Grande said at the time. “I didn’t understand the first sentence. And then I definitely didn’t understand what was happening — how you [Erivo] responded. I was like, ‘Oh, what did she say? What did you hear?’ And I just wanted to be there ’cause I knew something big was happening, and I didn’t know how to be there.”

Erivo admitted that she, too, was at a loss. “After a while, I didn’t know how to be there,” the Tony winner said.

Grande added that Erivo’s reaction is what prompted the finger-grabbing. “I was like, ‘Cause she looks like she’s about to cry again. And I’m gonna grab this ’cause I think you might need something,'” she recalled. “And I don’t know what the tapping was about, but that happened.”

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A year later, Grande and Erivo’s friendship appears to be going strong. The duo are often spotted hand-in-hand on the red carpet, and just last week, Erivo jumped to the singer’s defense when a fan rushed and grabbed the superstar at the movie’s Singapore premiere. Reflecting on their friendship with Poehler, Grande noted that it’s not easy to “stay connected” now that they’re working on various projects and no longer on set together, but it’s been well worth the effort.

“That’s something we’ve worked hard to maintain,” she said. “A lot of time that passes between wrapping the film and then the press tour happening. And it’s a check-in, here and there when you can. We’re both so busy but do our best to stay connected in that way and to take care of each other. ‘Let’s all take care of each other so we can honor the project as much as humanly possible and do great work’ is like the best lens ever.”

Wicked: For Good flies into theaters Nov. 21. Watch Grande’s full conversation with Poehler above.