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Something Wicked this way comes for the 2025 Oscars.
On Wed. Feb 26, Academy Awards executive producer Katy Mullan shared with reporters during the 97th Oscars Creative Team press conference that Cynthia Erivo, who is set to perform with her Wicked co-star Ariana Grande during the telecast, will have “a very special moment in the show.”
“I think that Cynthia delivered an incredible performance this year and there is a very special moment on the show. We can’t reveal what it is or where it is,” Mullan said. “I think that any fans of Cynthia Erivo, you’re going to get something that is hugely entertaining and full of joy and really celebrates her, her incredible talent and her place in the last year in music,” Mullan added.
On Monday, Feb. 24, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences confirmed that Erivo, 38, as well as her Wicked co-star Grande, 31, will take the stage for a performance during the awards ceremony this Sunday, March 2.
“A spellbinding moment awaits,” the event organizers also teased in a social media post, promising a “performance you won’t forget.”
Other announced performers for the ceremony will be Queen Latifah, who will take part in a Quincy Jones tribute, plus Doja Cat, Lisa of BLACKPINK, Raye as well as a special appearance by the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
“The music performances are just really special and curated this year. I think they speak to this year in film and they also speak to icons and legends,” Raj Kapoor, executive producer and showrunner of the Academy Awards, told PEOPLE during the press conference.
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Hosted by Conan O’Brien, this year’s Oscars ceremony will not feature live performances of the Best Original Song nominees, the Academy revealed in January.
Wicked landed 10 total Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and acting recognition for both Erivo and Grande.
Though Wicked: Part One had no original tunes eligible for Oscar consideration, Erivo has teased at least one new song she co-wrote for the sequel in theaters later this year, Wicked: For Good.
“I feel like the song is very, very special. I have a feeling that even the title will move you,” she told Variety.
See PEOPLE’s full coverage of the 97th annual Academy Awards, hosted by Conan O’Brien and airing on ABC.
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