Ariana Grande getting seduced by a hunk who is not her boyfriend was not on our bingo card for today

Ariana Grande‘s relationship with Wicked co-star Ethan Slater was a scandal when news first broke. But now that the fire had died down, Grande is free to promote her new movie in a new clip.

Released by Fandango on X (formerly Twitter), the new clip features Slater’s character in a behind-the-scenes look at Wicked. Fans can see behind the curtain at the unlikely trio, Galinda (Grande), Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) and Boq (Ethan Slater). Slater tells viewers the main dynamic from his character’s perspective, an unassuming university student from Munchkinland.

“Boq comes to school looking for a community than the one he’s known,” Slater explains. While looking to ingratiate himself into higher education, he falls in with Galinda and Fiyero. Slater credits Boq’s newfound acceptance to Bailey’s character.

“He meets Fiyero who becomes his sort of guiding light.”

As in the stage musical, Fiyero is a corruptor of minds and your prototypical bad boy. He encourages his friends to bend the rules, but it is his dynamic with Galinda that sets hearts aflutter. Grande and Slater’s real-life relationship may be tabloid fodder, but things are quite different within the walls of Shiz. The clip also shows the complicated triangle that only Boq may be aware of in the film. As Fiyero guides his classmates, Galinda clearly holds an attraction for him and pays no attention to Boq. She gasps when Fiyero touches her familiarly and enjoys opportunities to dance with him. Wicked employs the classic trope of Boy Loves Girl who has no interest in him. This is central to the plot of the musical as well as Gregory Maguire’s book.

Boq wants something he can never have in Wicked

There are many complicated love triangles in Wicked, making more of an awkward love hexagon. Nessa (Marissa Bode) loves Boq who loves Galinda who loves Fiyero. Fiyero appreciates Galinda for a time before his gaze shifts to Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo). The new footage features these complexities during a dance sequence at Shiz University. Boq offers to dance with Nessa who has needed the use of a wheelchair since birth. This is in part a kind gesture, but also a way to get Galinda’s attention who is wrapped up in Fiyero. Slater explains that while Boq likes Nessa, his heart always belongs to Galinda. This leads to dire consequences, which is a large component of the story.

The ties that bind the characters together during college set a cataclysm of events later on. Elphaba feels ostracised because of her green skin and ability to perform magic no one else can. This causes her to go down a dangerous path in the name of equality. Her love for Fiyero is ultimately to his detriment and Boq also gets wrapped up in the consequences of witchcraft. While Wicked seems like a fun and silly musical on the outside, it discusses mature themes such as racism, politics, and the nature of good and evil. Viewers can experience all of this — or at least the first part — when Wicked premieres on November 22, 2024.