Report: Wicked Stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande Will Open This Year's Oscars | Playbill

Film & TV News Report: Wicked Stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande Will Open This Year's Oscars

Producers are keeping mum on which song or songs from the 2003 Broadway musical and current Best Picture nominee will be performed.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Universal Pictures

After weeks of rumors, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande will indeed open this year's Academy Awards broadcast with a performance from Wicked. The film is up for the night's top honor—Best Picture—with both leading ladies nominated for their performances as well.

What's still up in the air is which song—or songs—from the Stephen Schwartz score will be performed, though it feels safe to assume it will be material from the stage-to-screen musical's first installment, covering the stage musical's first act.

Winners of the 97th Annual Academy Awards will be named March 2 at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The ceremony will broadcast live on CBS (check local listings) with Conan O'Brien hosting.

Wicked is also up for awards in the Film Editing, Production Design, Costume Design (for Tony winner Paul Tazewell), Original Score, Makeup and Hair Styling, Sound, and Visual Effects categories.

The movie musical's main competition seems to be fellow musical Emilia Pérez, which has 14 nominations, including Best Picture, and has already won the Golden Globe. Also nominated from the world of theatre are Colman Domingo for his work in Sing Sing, Tony winner Ralph Fiennes for Conclave, Timothée Chalamet for A Complete Unknown, Sebastian Stan for The Apprentice, Kieran Culkin for A Real Pain, and Jeremy Strong for The Apprentice.

To view the complete list of nominees, visit Oscars.org.

 
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