Wicked's Cynthia Erivo explains why it was important for Elphaba to have micro braids

18 November 2024, 19:31 | Updated: 18 November 2024, 21:36

By Katie Louise Smith

"I felt like these little nods to us as Black women were really important. It didn't erase who I was underneath the green as well."

Cynthia Erivo has opened up about the important inclusion of Elphaba's micro braids in the Wicked movie, something she immediately brought to the table as soon as she was cast in the role.

Based on the reviews and the feedback from fans who have already seen the film, Cynthia's Elphaba is set to become one of the greatest takes on the musical's beloved protagonist. Not only because of her performance (the vocals, hello?!!) but because of the game-changing details Cynthia and the crew brought to the forefront of the character – her hair, in particular.

In the stage musical, Elphaba's hair is black and slightly wavy. The wig's texture doesn't change, not even when a Black actress portrays the character. However, in the film, Cynthia's Elphaba wears micro braids.

Similar to how important it was to Halle Bailey to keep her own locs while playing Ariel in The Little Mermaid, Cynthia has now shared why she wanted her Elphaba to have braids.

• Read more: Wicked's Cynthia Erivo didn't think she would be cast as Elphaba because she's Black
• Read more: Wicked's Cynthia Erivo slams "deeply hurtful" Elphaba poster edits

Speaking to Elle about the decision behind Elphaba's micro braids, Cynthia said: "It connects to who I am underneath the skin. There’s a complete connection between me and her—we’re not just erasing who’s playing this character."

She added that the micro braids, alongside Elphaba's freckles, eye colour and nails (which Cynthia also incorporated into her version of the character), “allowed me to really fall in love with this woman."

Chatting to Fandango, she added: "I felt like these little nods to us as Black women were really important. It didn't erase who I was underneath the green as well."

Elaborating on the importance of the braids and the representation behind the hairstyle, Cynthia opened up further while speaking at Culture Con. "I asked for those micro braids at the beginning," she said. "It was a real discussion and I knew exactly– immediately when I knew I was playing the role, it was the first thing I knew about what I wanted for her."

"I don't want like, the long tresses, I want micro braids because it's very particular and there's a set of us that will recognise them immediately," she continued.

A day in the life of Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo

Responding to the conversation about Elphaba's braids on social media earlier this year, Cynthia took to Instagram Stories to share how moved she feels by the whole thing.

"The conversation that is going on about these micro braids makes me so emotional, because it is a symbol for how seen and heard I felt on this production, how amazing my hairstylist @simcamps_professional was and how incredible @jonmchu is."

"There are so many more little details that are to come, and I can't wait for you to see them all!!"

In an interview with Glamour, Academy Award-winning makeup, hair & prosthetics artist Frances Hannon explained the full process of achieving Elphaba's look in the film.

Sharing how she worked with Cynthia, who was part of the conversation from the very start, Frances said: "It was in the early days of research that I came across this particular micro braiding that I liked. We researched everything, the history of braiding and the contemporary looks now. We wanted to make it timeless, so it was trying to find a balance."

"Cynthia as an artist is tiny, and her costumes—that big witch’s hat and those cloaks—are big. So we had to bring a style to Cynthia that could grow and change but not swamp her. Micro braiding fulfilled every nuance. It kept her head shape very small and tight. It allowed development by letting it free, but keeping it very simple."

She continued: "Elphaba isn’t vain, unlike Glinda, so she wouldn’t be doing anything too fancy to herself or taking time for that sort of thing. I brought it to Jon Chu and Marc Platt. Jon really loved the idea, then he took it to Cynthia, and she loved the idea. It just developed from there."

Cynthia wears a total of seven wigs throughout the film. On top of that, the hair and makeup team also created the same wigs for the stand-ins and stunt doubles.

In total, there were around 17 Elphaba wigs made for the movie. It took four braiders several days to braid each individual wig.

Read more about Wicked here:

• Wicked's Ariana Grande points out 'Popular' lyric mistake after error goes viral
• Wicked's Ethan Slater reveals how he coped with intense trolling following his casting
• Wicked movie includes different version of Glinda's 'Popular' with new parts
• Ariana Grande responds to criticism of her playing Glinda in Wicked
• Amanda Seyfried reveals she auditioned to play Glinda in the Wicked movie

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