In an interview with Gay times in the process of becoming never-ending and increasingly nonsensical Bad press tour (I obsessively consumed every second of it), Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande were asked about “Gelphie,” the everpopular Bad femmeslash ship that clearly positions Elphaba and Glinda as more than friends. “Glinda might be a little closeted,” said Grande, who plays Glinda in the film. And she is not the only Glinda portraitist who thinks this way. When E News posted the “little bit in the closet” segment on Instagram, Kristin Chenoweth, who created the role on Broadway, chimed in in the comments saying, “I thought that too a long time ago when…”

It’s official: two out of two Glindas agree that Glinda might be a little closeted. (For some reason, Cheno’s use of ellipses in the comment really gets to me. Gen Xers and their love of dot dot dot drama!)

When asked if Gelphie could ever become explicitly canon, Grande replied: “You never know, give it some time. It’s just real love, and I think it transcends sexuality.”

The Gay times The interview is full of ambiguous language about Elphaba and Glinda’s relationship and sexuality, but I’m honestly quite interested in that ambiguity! Their relationship is difficult to define, and being vague about it does not amount to “queerbaiting.” You could say that they make room for the complexity of the relationship. But in all seriousness, I Doing think the Elphaba/Glinda dynamic defies conventional definition. It’s no exaggeration to say that they canonically have a relationship that goes beyond friendship, and if Chenoweth and Grande both sense a petit queerness in the character they play, then there’s clearly something there!

Erivo added about Elphaba that “she goes wherever the wind goes.” She continues: “I think she loves Glinda, I think she loves love. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with celebrating the deep bond they both have.

“They do have a real relationship,” Erivo also says Gay times. “It’s true love, and that’s probably why people send it. What they build together is an unbreakable bond and love.”

Elphaba comes out as loving Glinda and loving LOVE. Glinda is a bit in the closet. The Bad press tour remains For The Theater Gays. Stay tuned for an upcoming Autostraddle deep dive on queer history and origins Bad!

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