Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, stars of the Wicked movie, have addressed the viral “holding space” meme from an on-camera interview with OUT magazine.
During the conversation, journalist Tracy E. Gilchrist noted how LGBTQ+ fans resonate deeply with Wicked‘s anthem “Defying Gravity,” and asked how the actors felt about people “really taking the lyrics of ‘Defying Gravity’ and really holding space with that and feeling power in that.”
When the reporter made the comment, Erivo, who plays Elphaba in the movie, emotionally responded, “That’s really powerful,” and “That’s what I wanted.”
The clip gained traction online, and was celebrated for its awkward yet heartfelt vibe. Fans humorously fixating on Grande grabbing onto Erivo’s finger and tapping it during the emotional exchange.
Ben STANSALL / AFP/Getty Images
But in a new interview with Variety, both actors have now said they were momentarily perplexed by what the reporter meant.
Grande, who plays Glinda in the movie, said, “So, I didn’t know what any part of it meant. I didn’t understand the first sentence. And then I definitely didn’t understand what was happening, how you responded,” she said, referring to Erivo’s impassioned response.
“I was like, ‘Oh what did she say, what did you hear?’ And I just wanted to be there because I knew that something big was happening. And I didn’t know how to be there. I didn’t know what was happening.”
Erivo then explained that, “After a while, I didn’t know how to be there.”
Grande continued to explain. “She said something that meant something to me and meant something totally different to you. And then she tried to kind of get somewhere else and the craziest thing was I remember in the moment asking myself ‘Am I OK? Did I not hear something? Because [Cynthia] looks like she’s about to cry again.'”
Referencing the much-talked-about finger grabbing, Grande continued: “I’m gonna grab this, because I think you might need something. I don’t know what the tapping was about.”
“She said that she was seeing it because she’s in queer media,” said Erivo, who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community. “And I was like, I honestly didn’t know what that meant and am I also in queer media, maybe. Let’s both be there.”
Since the original interview, the “holding space” comments and reactions have gone viral and spawned countless memes.
Both actresses have embraced the reaction, highlighting how the film’s themes connect with marginalized communities and inspire new audiences in creative and unexpected ways.
“It was so beautiful,” said Grande. “I’m glad, I feel really relieved that the world had the same experience with this moment that I did because I felt like, ‘Oh, I’m not broken’. I do love how the world has, like, gone with it.”
As reported by OUT, Gilchrist has since been approached to lend her voice to a MAC cosmetics Viva Glam campaign, which benefits select charities advancing sexual, gender, racial, and environmental equality.
Newsweek contacted Gilchrist via email on Saturday for comment.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
