Cynthia Erivo has revealed she suffered burns on her leg during the filming of her smash hit movie-musical Wicked.
The English actor, 37, who plays Elphaba Thropp in the film, is seen flying in the air at the end when she sings Defying Gravity.
But Cynthia has now revealed that filming the iconic scenes was ‘was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done’.
Speaking to ELLE magazine on Thursday as she graces its February cover, Cynthia said it required her to be strapped into a harness and hoisted into the air for hours each day, causing chafing.
The chafing was so bad, in fact, that Cynthia said she suffered superficial burns on her legs as the material rubbed and removed her skin.
During the interview, Cynthia also spoke out on how she feels about people claiming her casting in the film was a ‘woke hire’.
Cynthia Erivo has revealed in ELLE magazine’s February issue that she suffered burns on her leg during the filming of her smash hit movie-musical Wicked
The English actor, 37, who plays Elphaba Thropp in the film, is seen flying in the air at the end when she sings Defying Gravity
Speaking about filming her Defying Gravity scenes, Cynthia said: ‘Physically, it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, truly. I did all my own stunts – the jumps, the flying.
‘It looks simple, but 20 seconds on screen takes hours to do. So, I’m in a harness for hours, and it has to be extremely tight. Think about the word ‘chafing’. It sounds funny, but it’s the consistent rubbing of material, causing friction that removes skin, so you actually have a superficial burn in that area. And you’re experiencing it repetitively.
‘You have to find ways to keep going. That was my life for a few months.’
Cynthia went on to hit back at fans who have slammed her casting in the role of Elphaba.
‘There have definitely been conversations about me getting this role as a “woke hire”,’ she said.
‘I had to audition, just like everybody else. And I’m glad I had to do that. I have the credentials for it. I’ve done the work.
‘But I’m glad they got to be sure about the choice. It allows me to take this, and to know that I had to work really hard for it.’
Cynthia co-stars in the flick with Ariana Grande – who plays Glinda Upland – and the pair have developed a very close bond throughout the process.
But Cynthia has now revealed that filming the iconic scenes was ‘was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done’
Speaking to ELLE magazine on Thursday as she graces its February cover, Cynthia said it required her to be strapped into a harness and hoisted into the air for hours each day, causing chafin
The chafing was so bad, in fact, that Cynthia said she suffered superficial burns on her legs as the material rubbed and removed her skin
During the interview, Cynthia also spoke out on how she feels about people claiming her casting in the film was a ‘woke hire’
Speaking about filming her Defying Gravity scenes, Cynthia said: ‘Physically, it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, truly. I did all my own stunts – the jumps, the flying
‘We cultivated a friendship, outside of all of this, that allows us to have these real, deep connective conversations that join us as friends and sisters,’ Cynthia said.
‘We sit on FaceTime for hours.’
In Wicked, Elphaba is cruelly bullied and left out as a result of her green skin, and Cynthia said that when developing the character she wanted to include her experience as a black woman.
She said: ‘I was conscious that I didn’t want to erase the thing that I am underneath the green. For me, it was about using my own experience as the ‘other’, as someone who exists in that way.
‘So, that’s partially the reason why Elphaba has braids, as opposed to straight hair. It’s the reason why she has long nails.’
‘I think, because Elphaba’s otherness is about the colour of her skin, I immediately feel connected to it as a Black woman. The beauty is that it connects with anyone who feels like they’re the other – whether they are Black, whether they are queer, or whether they are just… different.’
Earlier this month, Cynthia revealed she felt a ‘great responsibility’ to look after Ariana during filming for the blockbuster musical.
Cynthia co-stars in the flick with Ariana Grande – who plays Glinda Upland – and the pair have developed a very close bond throughout the process
In Wicked, Elphaba is cruelly bullied and left out as a result of her green skin, and Cynthia said that when developing the character she wanted to include her experience as a black woman
She said: ‘I was conscious that I didn’t want to erase the thing that I am underneath the green’
Earlier this month, Cynthia revealed she felt a ‘great responsibility’ to look after Ariana during filming for the blockbuster musical
The singer explained in an interview with CBS News that before filming began the pair discussed how they would work together and Cynthia revealed she felt it was important to take care of the popstar.
She added that the pair both knew the film was going to be successful and knew that with all the pressure they would have to work together.
Cynthia told the US news channel: ‘Before we started shooting both of us had a conversation about making sure that we would take care of each other and make the space that we needed for each other, and take, you know, give each other what we needed, be generous with each other in this thing, because we knew it was a big undertaking.
‘We knew we had a big responsibility, but we knew neither of us could really do that alone.’
The February issue of ELLE UK is on sale from 03 January
