No matter how a character is written, Cynthia Erivo knows how to find their beauty.
In her November 2025 cover story for Harper’s Bazaar, the Oscar nominee opens up about the fact that two of her biggest roles to date—as Celie in The Color Purple and Elphaba in Wicked—have centered around characters who are identified as “ugly” in their source texts. But Erivo doesn’t see them that way.
As writer Jazmine Hughes notes: “For Elphaba, [Erivo] wanted to be intentional that what you saw—long micro braids, expertly manicured nails, a corset showing off her body-ody-ody—doesn’t match up with what you’re being told. The viewer has to make decisions about right and wrong and who to believe.”
“If it’s the only thing I put into this world, that everyone’s individual beauty is worth seeing and experiencing, and you don’t have to change it for anyone else other than yourself, then I’m happy,” Erivo says.
The London native—whose look is characterized by piercings, tattoos, and what has become her signature: long nails—is also supportive of people altering their appearance. “If you want to change and you want to get a new nose, you want to get new lips, fine. If that’s good for you, then that’s good for you—as long as it’s for you.”
Erivo will be arriving to screens as Elphaba once again, when Wicked: For Good is released in theaters on November 21.
In her chat with Bazaar, our Wicked Witch reveals that it was enriching to play a character who becomes so confident in herself over time. “What I love is having had the chance to play her when she has to figure out what she is and play her again when she knows.”
As a final thought, Erivo leaves her readers with this: “We have the habit of limiting ourselves, based on the bodies we come to Earth in and other people’s perceptions. And when you can let go of those things, it’s very freeing.”
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.harpersbazaar.com ’
