We already know how Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are two of the best vocalists of their generation, so clearly their voices are being used in the Wicked movies. But, are they singing live in the movie or lip-syncing to pre-recorded vocals?
The big-voiced divas bring Elphaba and Glinda to life in the big-screen adaptation of the beloved Broadway musical. To do so, they had to perform some of the project’s biggest and most challenging songs.
Traditionally, an actor will often lip-sync along to a pre-recorded version of a song in a movie. However, you might be surprised to learn that is not how Ariana and Cynthia approached the movie.
Keep reading to find out more…
Speaking to Vanity Fair, Wicked director Jon M. Chu revealed that the actresses insisted on singing live while on set.
He was nervous, but they assured him that singing is “what [they] do.”
Ariana described the decision as “an immediate no-brainer” for both her and Cynthia in a behind-the-scenes video.
“We chose to sing live because it meant that we would be further connected to the words we were saying and to each other,” Cynthia explained, adding, “There’s something special about what happens when music is live in a room.”
With the decision, Jon said that the set became “essentially a recording studio.”
Find out if costar Jonathan Bailey also sings in the movie!
Did you see that Ariana revealed we were singing the lyrics to “Popular” wrong?