What you need to know
There’s a sentimental reason for Ariana Grande to appear using her full name in the movie Wicked.
The 32-year-old pop star was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for last year’s Wicked: Part 1 and is credited with playing Ariana Grande-Butera in both its new sequel, Wicked: For Good.
“Technically, this is my little girl’s name. Technically, it’s little Ali’s name,” Grande said in a 2024 Hit Network interview when asked about the symbolism of this name choice.
“This experience feels very much like coming home for me. I feel like I came back to myself in a lot of ways through what I learned from Glinda and Elphaba. That was my name when I went to see the show when I was 10 years old, and it felt like a really nice way to honor that. It really felt like it came full circle, and it felt like what I wanted to do.”
Grande is the last name of the actress’ mother Joan, and Boutella is the last name of her father Ed. Her parents divorced when she was a child.
Giles Keate/Universal Pictures
Never miss a news. Sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up to date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to human interest stories.
However, it doesn’t seem like Grande intends to make the name change permanent for all her future movie roles.
When Universal shared a press release announcing the title and November 2026 release date for Ben Stiller’s Fokker in Law sequel, she was credited as Ariana Grande, along with castmates Robert De Niro, Owen Wilson, Blythe Danner, Terry Polo, and Beanie Feldstein.
Additionally, when it was officially announced in October that she would be appearing in next year’s installment of Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story series, her name appeared as Ariana Grande.
Arturo Holmes/WireImage
In July, it was revealed that she and Josh Gad would be lending their voices to Oh the Place, You’ll Go!, a Dr. Seuss animated film directed by Wicked director Jon M. Chu, to be released in 2028, with Ariana Grande written in the script.
On the Today show on Tuesday, November 18, Grande announced that acting will be her main focus going forward. (She has an Eternal Sunshine concert tour planned for 2026.)
“I really enjoy acting right now. I think that’s what I’m most inspired by right now, whether it’s film, theater, or a little something here and there,” she said. “I’ll still sing, I promise. But yes, right now, that’s my current situation.”
Wicked: For Good is currently in theaters.
