Cynthia Erivo reflected on the heartbreaking end of Evil: forever.
During a wide-ranging conversation at the Elphaba’s Wicked Retreat Airbnb Original Experience event, she weighed in on the conclusion of her character Elphaba’s story in the franchise.
The sequel ends with the Wicked Witch staging her own death by hiding under a trap door. Once Dorothy grabs her broom and emerges triumphant, Elphaba’s lover Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) helps her out of hiding.
At the beginning of the film, Fiyero was going to marry Glinda (Ariana Grande) but left her for Elphaba. He was turned into straws due to a protective spell and is later seen walking into the sunset away from Oz.
Before leaving, Elphaba gives her Grimmerie spell book to the newly empowered Glinda, and the two reconcile, singing one last repetition of Forever.
The song features Elphaba singing the touching line: “Just look at me / Not with your eyes, with theirs.”
Referring to the intimate moment between the two characters and that touching line, Erivo said, “Two things are happening in that line. It’s trying to help Glinda see what’s really happening, but it’s also a comfort.”
“I think she sees that her friend sees her one way,” he explained. “And I love it when between the lines you can say something in one sentence, but there’s so much more going on.”
Erivo explained that Elphaba urges Glinda to “Look at me, look at me. Not with your eyes”, reminding her that Glinda sees her differently from the rest of the world.
She added that Elphaba wants Glinda to accept that truth, because “that’s the only way we can move forward.”
The actress said she loves the phrase “because it’s something Elphaba has to record too.”
“I think it’s the first time he’s adapted to what’s coming next,” Erivo said.
The final scene of the film shows a flashback to Elphaba and Glinda’s college days, as the couple sit in a field of poppies.
The scene closes as Glinda turns and whispers something in her friend’s ear, a nod to the iconic logo from the Broadway production of Wicked.
