Universal Pictures is slamming rumors of a whopping pay disparity between Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo and insists the “Wicked” stars were equally compensated for the Broadway hit’s big screen adaptation.
The “completely false” claims, which circulated online over the weekend, alleged that the 31-year-old pop star made $15 million to Oscar nominee Erivo’s $1 million for portraying Glinda and Elphaba, respectively, Variety reports.
“Reports of pay disparity between Cynthia and Ariana are completely false and based on internet fodder,” a spokesperson for the studio told Variety, explaining the Grammy winners “received equal pay for their work on ‘Wicked.’”
Universal did not specify to Variety how much the actors made for Jon M. Chu’s long-awaited “Wizard of Oz” prequel, which flew into theaters Friday. The film also stars Jonathan Bailey, Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh, as well as Academy Award nominee Jeff Goldblum.
The film currently boasts a 90% approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, down two points from pre-release reviews last Wednesday. Even so, “Wicked” still holds the coveted Certified Fresh critics score and a Verified Hot audience score of 96%.
The opening weekend proved as “popular” as could be. “Wicked” racked up $112.5 million stateside and grossed nearly $163 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo.
The third-biggest opening of the year, just behind “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Inside Out 2,” “Wicked” now holds the title of biggest domestic opening weekend for a Broadway adaptation, beating out “Into the Woods.”
The opening weekend earnings for “Wicked” also now put it ahead of “Les Miserables” as the biggest opening weekend globally for a Broadway adaptation. The film is also the fifth-largest musical debut in history.
Universal did not immediately respond to the Daily News’ request for comment.
