Cynthia Erivo Reflects on Shaving Head for Elphaba Role in Wicked

LOS ANGELES, April 10, 2025 — Cynthia Erivo shared emotional insights about shaving her head for her Oscar-nominated portrayal of Elphaba during the Canva Create event at SoFi Stadium. The actress, appearing confident with her bold look, recalled her initial reaction when she first glimpsed her shaven reflection.

“I remember feeling so open and vulnerable when there was nothing there,” Erivo said, noting how the absence of hair made her focus on her features. “I thought I’d really like that. I like how open that is; I like how much of a black canvas it is, and I like that there’s nothing but my eyes.” Since the dramatic cut, Erivo expressed that she feels more “in my body, in myself.”

Erivo also recounted her journey toward embracing shorter hairstyles, which began before her Wicked role. “I used to get my hair braided in different colors,” she reminisced. “To this day, there was one hair salad — I’m gonna get white and red braids. You couldn’t tell me that it wasn’t the best hairstyle I had ever done.”

Reflecting on her past, she said, “I had a lot of hair when I was younger. So when I went to drama school, I thought, ‘I want people to see my face.’ I wanted to see what it’s like to have short hair.”

Erivo eagerly described the transformation, saying that she initially faced resistance from her hairstylist. “She was afraid I would miss the length of my hair… and then I went back two days later and I cut it all off,” Erivo recalled, emphasizing her desire to present her authentic self at auditions.

In discussing her collaboration with hairstylist Sim Camps for her Elphaba wig, Erivo expressed her appreciation for Camps’ expertise. “I bumped into Sim on a job called Luther,” Erivo noted. “She’s just brilliant at what she does, and her eye for detail is beyond.” After discussing her vision for micro braids, Camps took swift action, employing a previous wig maker who had worked with Erivo years ago.

“She contacted the person who made a wig for me in a play 12 years ago, took measurements, sent it off, and they worked out how to make the wig look like it was growing from my scalp,” Erivo explained. “We dyed the lace of the wig a light green, so it would blend seamlessly with my skin tone.”

As Erivo prepares for the release of her second studio album, “I Forgive You,” on June 6, she also shared insights into her artistic process and how she approaches new roles. “I want to know who the character is. It’s often about the person I’m being asked to portray,” she stated.

Her ambition goes beyond the surface as she aims to understand the depths of her characters. “That challenge gives me the opportunity to find empathy for the person that I might be playing,” Erivo said, noting that this desire drives her performances.

“Elphaba was one of those roles I really didn’t know how far I could go with her. It surprised me,” Erivo continued. “And I think once I discovered there’s a little more to play with, the world opened up a little bit more.”

With “Wicked: Part Two” set for release on November 21, Erivo’s commitment to her craft promises to leave a lasting mark on audiences.