Warning: This article contains spoilers for Wicked, the 2024 movie and the Broadway musical.Wicked is a story about corrupt governments, discrimination, and propaganda, but it is also largely the story of the friendship between the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch, beginning long before Dorothy arrives in Oz. The narrative started out as Gregory Maguire’s novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which positions Elphaba Thropp as the main character and Galinda Upland as her unlikely and ironic friend. The Wicked book was greatly changed when it was adapted for Broadway, including the friendship being brought to the forefront.

In 2024, Wicked was revitalized with a movie adaptation, based on the show rather than the book. The Wicked cast is stunningly led by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande-Butera as Elphaba and Galinda/Glinda, respectively. With amazing individual performances and larger-than-life chemistry, Erivo and Grande-Butera perfectly capture the tumultuous, affectionate, supportive, and ethereal dynamic between the two enemies-to-friends. Elphaba and Glinda undergo a shared arc of seeing each other as forgone rivals, before realizing the ways that their personalities, fears, and aspirations actually complement each other and that they will need one another for what is to come.

Elphaba & Galinda Meet & Accidentally Become Roommates At Shiz University

Elphaba & Galdina Hate Each Other On Sight But Are Forced Into Each Other’s Proximity, Becoming Pᴀssionate Nemeses

Elphaba and Galinda meet when they both arrive at Shiz University, Galinda as a student and Elphaba merely helping drop off her sister Nessarose. Galinda has an exaggerated reaction of shock to Elphaba’s green skin before making an offer to help her once she is a sorceress to impress everyone else. Elphaba immediately calls Galinda out as a panderer to others’ opinions and dismisses her. This might have been the end of things, but Elphaba’s accidental display of magic leads to Madame Morrible insisting she enroll.

Galinda, trying to win over Madame Morrible, runs up to them, which Morrible mistakenly interprets as Galinda volunteering to room with Elphaba. While their fights may seem superficial, Galinda is also deeply jealous of Elphaba’s natural magic power and her being favored by Madame Morrible, as Galinda’s life-long dream is to be a sorceress. The two devolve into a chaotic school rivalry of “the popular girl vs. the nerdy girl” — of pranks, insults, and constantly rearranging the room — in which the entire school takes Galinda’s side, demonstrating an early form of the motif of mob mentality in Wicked.

Elphaba & Galinda Become Friends When Everyone At Shiz Goes To A Party

A Prank Gone Awry & The Night At The Ozdust Changes Elphaba & Galinda’s Lives

When Fiyero arrives at Shiz, he convinces everyone to go out dancing at the Ozdust ballroom. Spurred on by her friends, Galinda gifts a fashionably distasteful hat to Elphaba as a prank and invites her out with them as well. However, Elphaba interprets this as a genuine olive branch, and immediately goes to Madame Morrible and gets Galinda into her sorcery seminar, leading Galinda to seriously reflect on the kind of person she has been and the kind of person Elphaba is — right before Elphaba shows up at the Ozdust and is mocked by everyone for her hat.

Galinda saves the moment by stepping up and dancing with Elphaba in a beautiful, instinctive display of reconciliation. Elphaba and Galinda’s natural chemistry begins to come through, as they very quickly confide in each other, including Elphaba telling Galinda about her difficult upbringing. Galinda also becomes committed to making Elphaba popular; the rest of the school is more friendly towards her after she becomes friends with Galinda. Elphaba and Galinda are friends at school for an undetermined amount of time after this (likely a few weeks to months), and Galinda becomes Elphaba’s biggest supporter in her magical education.

Galinda (Now Glinda) Comes With Elphaba To The Emerald City To Meet The Wizard

Elphaba & Glinda’s Friendship Is Put To The Test, But They Respect Each Other’s Different Priorities

Despite Elphaba’s growing feelings for Fiyero (who is in a relationship with Galinda) and Galinda changing her name to Glinda for mostly superficial reasons (claiming it to be an act of protest against Dr. Dillamond’s arrest), the young women’s bond is incredibly compᴀssionate and enduring. Elphaba invites Glinda to come to the Emerald City with her at the last minute for no reason other than she wants her company along the way. The two have a fun day in the city before things take a dark turn, and their fundamental differences come to light.

Upon the realization of the true nature of the Wizard of Oz, Glinda immediately tries to calm Elphaba down and maintain a cordial negotiation, while Elphaba does not hesitate in steeling the Grimmerie and trying to escape. “Defying Gravity” begins with them voicing the things about the other that truly do frustrate them. However, when Elphaba ᴀsserts that she will not cooperate with the Wizard’s corrupt regime, the two are able to respect that they each need to take a different path based on who they are. Elphaba flees, leaving Glinda as Madame Morrible’s only sorcery student.

Elphaba & Glinda Don’t See Each Other For Some Time, While Glinda Becomes The Wizard’s Spokesperson

Glinda & Elphaba May Technically Be Enemies At This Point, But Have Avoided Confrontation

Wicked: For Good will presumably closely follow the plot of the second half of the show, which picks up after another unclear time jump (probably at least a couple of years later). Glinda the Good is now the Wizard’s spokesperson and the regime’s counter to the Wicked Witch of the West. Glinda greatly enjoys public adoration and avoids saying anything specifically condemning her friend, but still goes along with the Wizard and Madame Morrible’s propaganda. In the time Elphaba has been on the run, she has not seen Glinda at all.

Elphaba & Glinda Reunite At Glinda & Fiyero’s Engagement Ball — & Fiyero Leaves With Elphaba

Elphaba & Glinda’s Trust In Each Other Is Shattered By The Situation With Fiyero

Glinda also announces her engagement to Fiyero, and a ball is thrown in the Emerald City to celebrate shortly after. Elphaba arrives under the pretense of freeing the flying monkeys, but also probably because of Fiyero. Glinda has the rug ripped out from under her and is probably questioning years of her life when Fiyero leaves her for Elphaba pretty much as soon as he knows Elphaba is there. It is a moment of betrayal on both sides: Elphaba is mostly happy that Fiyero reciprocates her feelings, while Glinda thoughtlessly suggests a plan to capture Elphaba in her anger.

Elphaba & Glinda Get In A Huge Fight After Nessarose Is Killed

Elphaba & Glinda’s Relationship Reaches Its Breaking Point

Unbeknownst to Glinda, Madame Morrible summons the storm which brings Dorothy to Oz and kills Nessarose. Elphaba and Glinda run into each other again at the site of Nessa’s death, where tensions finally boil over. They are both fed up with the other’s approach to what is going on in Oz, while Glinda is still furious about Fiyero. What results is a slapstick fight that effectively captures their chaotic feelings. Elphaba is then nearly arrested, but Fiyero intervenes to save her; while she is able to flee, he is captured himself, despite Glinda’s protests.

Glinda Comes To Warn Elphaba, & They Make Peace Before Parting Ways

Wicked’s Best Friends Meet One Last Time & Sing “For Good”

Having realized the truth about Madame Morrible, Glinda goes to Elphaba’s castle to try to persuade her to free Dorothy and warn her that she is in true danger this time. They receive news of Fiyero’s supposed death and are both heartbroken. A reconciliation unfolds, but also again recognition of their differences, as Elphaba tells Glinda she must lead Oz now with the skills Elphaba never had. Elphaba gives Glinda the Grimmerie, and the two tearfully reflect on how they have changed each other’s lives in song.

Elphaba then confronts Dorothy and is supposedly melted. A devastated Glinda ousts the Wizard and has Morrible arrested; she is left knowing that she must rule well for the sake of her friend. However, she does not know that both Elphaba and Fiyero survived and fled Oz together. This, perhaps, is Wicked‘s most heartbreaking aspect: Glinda may never know that Elphaba lived, but the story demonstrates that their values and how they set out to change the world will always be influenced by each other.