Ariana Grande Tests Positive for COVID-19 One Day Before ‘Wicked: For Good’ Hits Theaters

After an intensive press schedule leading into the film’s release, Ariana Grande announced she has tested positive for COVID-19. The news came via an Instagram Story posted Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025 — one day before the sequel’s scheduled global release on Nov. 21, 2025.

In her Instagram Story she shared a photo from her recent appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and captioned the image “moments before Covid.” The diagnosis forced Grande to cancel several promotional commitments.

Reports indicate she withdrew from a planned spot on The Kelly Clarkson Show — which her Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo covered alone — and skipped a number of Q&A events tied to Wicked: For Good. (Variety has reported on the cancellations.) Both Grande and Erivo previously tested positive for COVID during production of the film, according to earlier accounts.

Erivo has also battled health issues during the final promotional stretch: she briefly lost her voice and missed red-carpet interviews ahead of the New York premiere, though she returned to media appearances by Thursday morning, sounding hoarse but upbeat during a guest spot on Today.

Grande’s Tonight Show appearance now stands as her final public engagement before the film’s worldwide opening. On Fallon she performed a medley of classic duets — including “Shallow” (Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper) and “Apt.” (ROSÉ & Bruno Mars) — and discussed her upcoming return to Saturday Night Live as host in late December.

“I’m so excited,” she told Fallon, adding that she “almost passed out” when she learned Cher would be the episode’s musical guest and calling the opportunity “an honor.”

Source: Instagram Story (Nov. 20, 2025); photo credit Samir Hussein/WireImage. Additional reporting referenced from Variety.

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