Who Is Cynthia Erivo? The Wicked Actress' Age, Films, TV Shows And More

12 February 2024, 15:30

Here's everything you need to know about Ariana Grande's 'Wicked' co-star Cynthia Erivo.

Tony Award winning actress Cynthia Erivo will be coming to our screens at the end of the year for the highly anticipated movie musical Wicked, which she'll star in alongside 'yes, and?' singer Ariana Grande.

The 37-year-old actress and singer will play the role of Elphaba Thropp aka The Wicked Witch of The West, but she initially gained recognition for her talent after starring in the Broadway revival of The Color Purple between 2015 to 2017.

• Read more: Who Is Ariana Grande’s Boyfriend Ethan Slater? His Role In 'Wicked', Ex- Wife & More
• Read more: The First Look Of Ariana Grande As Glinda In Wicked Has Us All In Awe

Cynthia has a wonderful voice but has also starred in non-singing roles like her recent role in the thriller Luther: The Fallen Sun.

Her and Ariana have become really close friends since they started filming for Wicked, so we thought we'd get to know Cynthia a little better ahead of the upcoming film. Here's everything you need to know about the English star...

Who is Ariana Grande's Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo?

Cynthia Erivo is an English actress and singer who is best known for her musical performances. The talented actress is going to be starring as Elphaba in the upcoming movie musical Wicked alongside 'Positions' singer Ariana Grande and her boyfriend Ethan Slater.

Cynthia gained recognition on Broadway playing leading lady Celie Harris in The Color Purple between 2015 to 2017. She was awarded the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance and even won a Grammy for Best Musical Theatre Album.

In 2017 she performed performed 'God Only Knows' alongside John Legend at the Grammys as a tribute to musicians who had died over the past year.

After mastering the musical field she branched out to film in 2018, making her film debut in Bad Times at the El Royale, which also starred Chris Hemsworth and Dakota Johnson.

The London born star identifies as queer and bisexual and has opened up about coming out later in life. Speaking on The Kelly Clarkson Show, she said: “I don’t think I had the language to even know what was going on. It’s come much later to me now and it’s wonderful to just be me, really.”

She went on: “I think it’s sort of made space creatively to just sort of let go of whatever I was hiding.”

How old is Cynthia Erivo?

The English actress, who was born to Nigerian parents in South London on 8th January 1987, is 37 years old. She has spent most of her career in the UK but spent a few years on Broadway in America.

Ariana Grande stars in Wicked trailer

What TV shows and films has Cynthia Erivo been in?

Before securing her role as Elphaba in the upcoming film Wicked, Cynthia had already made her TV and film debut.

The first show she starred on was Michaela Coel's Chewing Gum which is a BAFTA-winning sitcom. In the series Cynthia appeared in the final episode as Magdalene.

Here's the full list of TV shows that Cynthia Erivo has been in:

• Chewing Gum (2015)
• Mr Selfridge (2016)
• The Tunnel (2016)
• Broad City (2017-2019)
• The Boss Baby: Back in Business (2018)
• Anthem: Homunculus (2019)
• Sunny Day (2019)
• The Outsider (2020)
• James and the Giant Peach with Taika and Friends (2020)
• Genius (2020)
• Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock (2022)
• Roar (2022)
• Star Wars: Visions (2023)
• Blue's Clues & You! (2023)
• Strange Planet (2023)
• Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur (2024)

She's also appeared as a guest judge on shows like American Idol and RuPaul's Drag Race.

Here's the full list of films that Cynthia Erivo has been in:

• Widows (2018)
• Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)
• Harriet (2019)
• Chaos Walking (2021)
• Needle in a Timestack (2021)
• Disney's Pinocchio (2022)
• Drift (2023)
• Luther: The Fallen Sun (2023)

Upcoming films:

• Wicked Part One (2024)
• Wicked Part Two (2025)

Which musicals has Cynthia Erivo done?

The star's first musical theatre credit dates back to her role in the production of Marine Parade which premiered at the 2010 Brighton Festival. After that show she went on to do a couple of others before landing the UK Tour of Sister Act, in which she played Deloris Van Cartier and Sister Mary Clarence.

Later on she performed in shows such as I Can't Sing! The X Factor Musical and A Midsummer Night's Dream but she is best known for performing in the Broadway revival of The Color Purple between 2015 and 2017.

Does Cynthia Erivo have any awards?

Yes, the actress not only has a Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical she also has a Grammy for Best Musical Theatre Album and a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Musical Performance.

Once we see her performance in Wicked alongside Ari she'll surely be up for a few more awards too.

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