Cynthia Erivo breaks down ‘Wicked: For Good' emotional ending

Cynthia Erivo reflected on heart-breaking ending of Wicked: For Good.

During a wide-ranging conversation at the Elphaba’s Wicked Retreat Airbnb Original Experience event, she weighed in on the conclusion of her character Elphaba’s story in the franchise.

The sequel ends with the Wicked Witch staging her own death by hiding under a trap door. Once Dorothy picks her broom and leaves triumphed, Elphaba’s lover, Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) helps get her out of her hiding spot.

Earlier in the film, Fiyero was getting married to Glinda (Ariana Grande) but he left her for Elphaba. He has been turned into straws due to a protective spell and later is seen walking into the sunset away from Oz.

Before leaving, Elphaba gives her Grimmerie spell book to a newly empowered Glinda, and the two reconcile, singing one last reprise of For Good.

The song features Elphaba singing the moving line, "Just look at me / Not with your eyes, with theirs."

Touching on the intimate moment between the two characters and that poignant line, Erivo said, "Two things are happening in that line. It's both trying to help Glinda see what's actually happening, but it's also a comfort."

"I think she sees that her friend sees her one way," she explained. "And I love between the lines when you can say something in a phrase, but so much more is going on."

Erivo explained that Elphaba urges Glinda to "Look at me, look at me. Not with your eyes," reminding her that Glinda sees her differently from the rest of the world.

She added that Elphaba wants Glinda accept that truth, because "that’s the only way we can move forward."

The actress said she loves the line "because it's something that Elphaba has to record, too."

"I think it's the first time that she settles into what has to come next," Erivo noted.

The final scene of the movie shows flashback to Elphaba and Glinda’s college days, as the pair sits in a poppy field. 

The scene closes when Glinda turns and whispers something to her friend’s ear, a nod to the iconic logo for the Broadway production of Wicked.