Did the makers really remove the “passionate” kiss between Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey from Wicked: For Good?

Wicked: For Good's screenwriter, Dana Fox, has reportedly opened up about removing a "little too passionate" kiss between Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey from the movie. In an exclusive conversation with Deadline, published on November 21, Dana opened up about whether there were any scenes that they wished had stayed in the film.

Dana revealed that every scene they "cut" from the film was for the "right reasons". She added that some scenes were also beautiful, including the kiss between Ariana Grande and Jonathan's characters. She explained,

"There was a scene between Fiyero (Jonathan) and Glinda (Ariana) that we cut in which they kissed; it was romantic and beautiful, but a little too passionate. Seeing that made it too hard to watch him make the choice he makes to be with Elphaba and made it too hard to make it OK that Elphaba ran off with him. It was too real that he and Glinda were actually feeling something together."

She added that the scene was "too adorable" to handle and could have influenced how the audience felt about the characters. She noted,

"This scene was too romantic, so it was like, “Oh, we can’t know that because then our brains will explode when he doesn’t choose her in the end. And then we’ll hate Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), Glinda and Fiyero.”

Note: This article contains potential spoilers for the plot of Wicked: For Good

Makers reveal the reasons behind removing scenes between Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey and more!

For an exclusive conversation with Deadline, Wicked: For Good's screenwriter, Dana Fox, opened up about their five-year journey of completing the movies, Wicked and Wicked: For Good. She revealed some "beautiful" scenes, including a passionate kiss between Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey, were removed from the sequel for the "right reasons." Dana explained that the scene was "too adorable" and could have left the audience with a different impression of the characters.

Apart from revealing the reasons for cutting some scenes, Dana also opened up about the intensive work that went into creating the films. She noted,

"I’m very emotional, so it’s hard for me to parse out whether I’m emotional because Wicked: For Good itself is so emotional, or if I’m 10 times more emotional, because this was five years of my life. We spent a year very intensely writing both scripts every second of every day, and then some more time after that. This all feels really powerful, having done that with your friends."

She described herself as the "luckiest" to have worked with director John Chu, "Stephen Schwartz and the amazing Winnie Holzman". She also addressed whether a Wicked 3 would be in the works. Dana revealed she would be "honoured" to be a part of it, and her daughter has suggested making a "prequel" of the movie. However, she noted,

"But again, sometimes I think the best things in life are the ones you want to take care of, like they’re the most delicate treasures. And sometimes that means not stepping on what’s very, very good."

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Wicked: For Good premiered in theatres on November 21, and the buzz about the musical continues. Dana Fox opened up about cutting the kiss scene between Ariana Grande and Jonathan to align with the storyline.

What are your thoughts on removing Ariana Grande and Jonathan's scene? Tell us in the comments below.

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