Amanda Seyfried Opens Up About Losing Wicked Role To Ariana Grande

Actor Amanda Seyfried has been in three notable musical movies — "Mamma Mia," "Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again," and "Les Misérables," per IMDb. According to Independent.ie, the "Mean Girls" actor took classical voice lessons as a teenager, but then quit for eight years. Even though she kept up with her love for music by singing just for fun, it was quite the adjustment when she trained for the role of Cosette in "Les Misérables."

"I wish I could redo 'Les Miz" completely," Seyfried said on Variety's "Actors On Actors" segment in 2021. "The whole live singing aspect, I still have nightmares about it. Emoting through music and melody is so magical when you really feel like you're there, and your voice is where it needs to be and it's as strong as it needs to be. And it wasn't."

Although she felt like "Les Miz" wasn't her best work vocally, Seyfried does have an impressive range, as she was able to sing the high notes in tune. The actor even joked to Porter that when she starts singing higher in the register when she does her vocal warmups, her dogs start singing too. And because of her ability to sing high, she loved the idea of being Glinda in the "Wicked" movie directed by Jon M. Chu. 

Amanda Seyfried is 'finally prepared' for whichever musical comes next

Amanda Seyfried was filming for her role as Elizabeth Holmes in "The Dropout," who is known to have a baritone voice, per the Los Angeles Times. She was scared of damaging her vocal cords, so she reached out to her vocal coach, saying that, "Sometimes we'd have to work together on weekends because I was auditioning for a musical." That musical was "Wicked."

"I literally bent over backwards while playing the hardest role of my life," the actor told Backstage on July 19. "But I think it also taught me how far I've come as a singer, which I really wanted to prove. Because ever since 'Les Miz,' I was like, I need to be better. I need to do better. So whatever comes next in terms of musicals, I'm finally prepared."

Seyfried mentioned in the "Actors On Actors" segment that she's been keeping up with her vocal training ever since "Les Misérables," and because of that, she expressed her interest in portraying Glinda in the upcoming "Wicked" movie, per Variety's "Awards Circuit" podcast, and saying, "I've never been more ready to hit those notes." Seyfried didn't make the cut, though, and it was announced that Ariana Grande would be portraying the role of Glinda. As Seyfried continues to improve her vocal skills, we can't wait for the next musical movie she is cast in.