This Victorious Moment Accidentally Foreshadowed Ariana Grande’s Wicked Role

From befriending Kristin Chenoweth backstage to outright declaring that she’d love to play Glinda in a decade-old interview, Ariana Grande’s Wicked role feels like fate, and it’s heartwarming to see her bring the character to life on the big screen.

But while countless clues predicted Grande’s turn in the record-smashing musical adaptation, there’s one surprising sign you might have missed. Indeed, one episode of Victorious takes on all-new significance in the context of Wicked.

A Witchy Encounter

In a scene from the reality-bending 2012 episode “April Fools Blank,” Grande’s Cat Valentine plays Dorothy in a Wizard of Oz parody. Here, she encounters Tori, who portrays a modern version of Glinda, sporting a classic tiara, tulle, and pink skinny jeans (because, 2012).

“Are you a good witch or a sandwich?” Tori asks. It’s a hilarious question to hear in hindsight because, one day, Grande would very much become the so-called Good Witch. But for now, she simply says, “Who, me? Well, I’m neither a witch nor a snack.”

Soon, Jade enters as the Wicked Witch of the West — aka who Elphaba comes to be known as in Wicked. Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion from The Wizard of Oz also make an appearance.

Not only does the scene foreshadow Grande’s journey to Oz, but it also shows off the comedic chops she’d put to good use throughout Wicked: Part 1.

Grande recently reflected on her Victorious experience during an appearance on the Podcrushed podcast, saying it was “so beautiful” to be part of something that meant a lot to young viewers. She also acknowledged that she’s “reprocessing” her relationship to the show more recently.

More Co-Wicked-ences

Of course, Victorious isn’t the only piece of Grande’s oeuvre that’s taken on new meaning after Wicked. For example, she once performed a duet of “What Is This Feeling?” with Seth MacFarlane on Carpool Karaoke: The Series.

Grande was featured in Mika’s “Popular Song,” which sampled “Popular” from the original Broadway musical, and it’s still a bop over a decade later. While Grande was down to put a fresh spin on the song for that collaboration, she was adamant about preserving the classic song for Wicked.

Composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz told the Los Angeles Times that while he briefly considered trying to “refresh the rhythm” or “hip-hop it up a little bit,” Grande had other ideas. “I want to be Glinda, not Ariana Grande playing Glinda,” Schwartz recalled her saying.