The illustrious Cynthia Erivo will grace the duvet of Harper’s BAZAAR’s November 2025 challenge, set to hit newsstands on Nov. 4, and inside, the Broadway and Hollywood powerhouse opens up about all the things from self-expression and fame to the distinct mindset behind her iconic character — the inexperienced and imply Elphaba — within the Oscar-winning adaptation of Depraved.
She’s blissful that fame and stardom got here later in her profession and life.
Reflecting on her unbelievable profession with author Jazmine Hughes, Erivo, 38, says she’s so grateful fame and stardom got here with divine timing
“I’m actually glad that fame has come to me later, as a result of I really feel so absolutely myself proper now that it’s not knocking me off my axis,” she gushed.
Erivo recalled realizing her fame after starring in Netflix’s 2023 thriller Luther: The Fallen Solar, when she was acknowledged in a retailer within the United Arab Emirates. At the moment, she was 36. That success would solely catapult to new heights after the discharge of the primary installment of Depraved in 2024, alongside along with her gorgeous Tony Awards internet hosting gig earlier this 12 months.
She appreciated being seen as her genuine self:
“Being in my pores and skin tone, as a Black girl, on mainstream TV, internet hosting, not even taking part in a personality.”
On how she expresses herself.
That unbelievable confidence has allowed the actress to indicate up authentically, a confidence that oozes over into her private model. More often than not, you’ll see Erivo unapologetically donning a shaved head, sporting daring designs, an intricate nostril ring, and sporting lengthy, dramatic nails, amongst different enjoyable apparel.
“That is what I need to appear to be,” she says. “I like a heel, I like a nail, I like a jaw, I like a bald head, I like a superb outfit. It’s legitimately a method of simply expressing components of myself.”
Erivo advised Hughes that she has witnessed a wave of self-acceptance impressed by her daring individuality, with extra folks embracing piercings, tattoos, and private model with out worry.
“If it’s the one factor I put into this world, that everybody’s particular person magnificence is price seeing and experiencing, and also you don’t have to vary it for anybody else apart from your self, then I’m blissful. If you wish to change and also you need to get a brand new nostril, you need to get new lips, superb. If that’s good for you, then that’s good for you—so long as it’s for you.”
On parting methods with Elphaba and the way the character has modified for the reason that first Depraved.
With the second and last installment of the beloved Depraved, titled Depraved: For Good, premiering on Nov. 21, Erivo mirrored on what it feels wish to lastly say goodbye to Elphaba, a personality she has spent years bringing to life.
“Elphaba shall be a part of my life perpetually, however we want separation,” she mentioned. “We’re not one and the identical anymore, however we will be mates.”
Followers will see a special Elphaba when the movie returns subsequent month —a witch who’s assured and empowered by her newfound energy, sense of self, and pent-up rage. In response to the movie’s synopsis, now branded because the Depraved Witch of the West, Elphaba lives in exile deep inside the forests of Oz, whereas Glinda, performed by Ariana Grande, resides within the Emerald Metropolis palace, basking within the glow of fame and adoration. However as an offended mob rises in opposition to the so-called Depraved Witch, Elphaba should reunite with Glinda to vary herself—and all of Oz—perpetually.
“What I like is having had the possibility to play her when she has to determine what she is and play her once more when she is aware of,” Erivo mentioned.
On her upcoming ebook, Merely Extra, and the which means behind its title.
Along with Depraved, Cynthia Erivo can even debut her first ebook, Merely Extra, subsequent month. With a U.S. launch date set for Nov. 18, Merely Extra, titled after a speech she gave whereas accepting a GLAAD Media Award earlier this 12 months, is devoted to these nonetheless holding their true identities shut out of worry.
“Of their quiet solitude, that’s nonetheless a measure of rise up and nonetheless deserves a bit of gentle,” she defined to Hughes. “What I wrote about was [that] these of us who’re within the gentle, who’re strolling round with our lanterns shining shiny, ought to simply change the path of the lanterns and shine it again on individuals who don’t know the place their path is but.”
Erivo feels particularly referred to as to help individuals who use they/them pronouns and the continuing struggle for dignity.
Learn Cynthia Erivo’s full Harper’s BAZAAR interview right here.
RELATED: ‘Depraved’, Zoe Saldana & Extra 2025 Golden Globes Winners
About The Author
