Why Cynthia Erivo Is Skipping the Golden Globes — Despite Her Nomination
If you’ve been scanning the Golden Globes red carpet wondering where is Cynthia Erivo is, you’re not alone. The Wicked: For Good star is up for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy this year — and she usually delivers a method dressing red carpet moment — but she’s sitting this one out. The reason? She’s in full-on rehearsal mode across the pond for a new Dracula production on London’s West End.
And it’s not just a quick cameo, either. Erivo is headlining a one-woman stage adaptation of Dracula where she plays 23 different characters, including the iconic vampire himself. Directed by Kip Williams, the show begins previews Feb. 4, and producers confirmed to Variety that there’s just no wiggle room in the schedule for a quick Los Angeles detour.
“If it feels like [an opportunity] might be something that I’m going to have to learn from — this is really scary, this is going to force me to find something else in my character, something else in who I am — then I say yes,” she told The Hollywood Reporter last month.
Erivo’s absence will certainly be felt at the Globes, but it comes as she returns to her first love: the theater. Dracula marks her grand return to London’s West End over a decade after she wowed audiences as Celie in the 2015 West End revival of The Color Purple. That breakout performance led Erivo to Broadway, where she earned a Tony Award for the role. In the years since, she’s kept a foothold on stage between film projects – even headlining a special concert production of Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl in 2025. It’s also a full-circle moment for the star, who has amassed awards in film, music, and theater; she’s currently just an Oscar shy of achieving the coveted EGOT status.
This year’s Golden Globes nomination also happens to be a milestone for Erivo. With her nod for Wicked: For Good, she became the first Black woman to be nominated twice in the Golden Globes’ lead actress (musical or comedy) category. Her previous nomination came just last year for the first Wicked film. This brings her total Golden Globe nominations to five, including recognition for her work in Harriet (which earned her nods for acting and original song) and Genius: Aretha, where she portrayed Aretha Franklin.
On nomination day, Erivo called the milestone “wonderful” and said she hopes it’s “just the beginning” for other Black women following behind her, per Variety. And if you’ve followed her awards season journey before, you know the fashion moment we’re missing: last year, she stunned in a glittering Louis Vuitton gown with a dramatic neckline — a perfect match to Ariana Grande’s sunshine-yellow Givenchy look. Both actors are nominated again this year — Grande is up for Best Supporting Actress — and their film is in the running for five awards, including Best Musical or Comedy and Cinematic and Box Office Achievement. The sequel has already grossed over $500 million globally.
More on Cynthia Erivo:
Before you go, click here to see the best Golden Globe red carpet looks.