Before she set up a residency in the uppermost regions of the Billboard Hot 100, however, Grande’s primary career was in acting. After all, the most devoted Ariana Grande stans first encountered the star through grainy YouTube clips of her Broadway debut (2008’s 13) or re-runs of Nickelodeon classics Victorious and Sam & Cat. After spending a few years cementing herself as one of the most dominant forces in mainstream music, Grande is making a grand return to acting with not one, but two forthcoming theatrical releases.

Grande is set to star as Glinda the Good Witch in the film adaptation of Wicked, the fourth-longest-running Broadway show of all time, which, in turn, pulls inspiration from the bestselling novel of the same title by Gregory Maguire. Academy Award nominee Cynthia Erivo is set to play opposite Grande as Elphaba, also known as the Wicked Witch of the West. Other notable cast members include Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Olivier Award winner Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Tony Award nominee Ethan Slater as Boq, Emmy Award nominee Bowen Yang as Pfannee and Emmy Award nominee Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard of Oz.

For its transition to the silver screen, Wicked will be split into two separate movie musicals. The first film is slated to hit theatres on Thanksgiving (Nov. 27), with the second film following almost exactly a year later on Nov. 26, 2025. The film’s first trailer debuted during the 2024 Super Bowl, giving fans a taste of both the whimsical world crafted by director Jon M. Chu and Erivo’s take on the iconic “Defying Gravity” closing riff.

As we continue to count down the days to Wicked — and her imminent Eternal Sunshine album — take a trip down memory lane a relive the best of Ariana Grande’s acting roles throughout her career so far.

13The Battery’s Down (2009)

How’s this for a throwback? For Ariana Grande’s first proper television billing we have to go all the way back to 2009. That’s right, four whole years before she made her Billboard Hot 100 debut with “The Way” (with Mac Miller).

In the “Bad Bad News” episode (season two, episode two) of Connor Gallagher’s The Battery’s Down — a 2008 musical comedy series — Grande is billed as “Bat Mitzvah Riffer.” Unsurprisingly, she doesn’t really do much outside of belting out some ridiculous high notes in an appearance that lasts just half a minute, but at least she sounded great while doing so!13The Battery’s Down (2009)

How’s this for a throwback? For Ariana Grande’s first proper television billing we have to go all the way back to 2009. That’s right, four whole years before she made her Billboard Hot 100 debut with “The Way” (with Mac Miller).

In the “Bad Bad News” episode (season two, episode two) of Connor Gallagher’s The Battery’s Down — a 2008 musical comedy series — Grande is billed as “Bat Mitzvah Riffer.” Unsurprisingly, she doesn’t really do much outside of belting out some ridiculous high notes in an appearance that lasts just half a minute, but at least she sounded great while doing so!

12Family Guy (2014)

Given that this is just a cameo, Grande’s appearance on Family Guy just barely makes this list. Nonetheless, her nod to her Italian heritage makes it memorable enough. In “Mom’s the Word,” episode 12 of season 12 of Family Guy, Grande voices one of the Italian next-door neighbors that Stewie and Brian eavesdrop on.

In a way, this Family Guy cameo foreshadowed Grande’s eventual collaboration with a fellow Italian-American pop icon. Remember when she and Lady Gaga topped the Billboard Hot 100 with their Grammy-winning dance-pop anthem “Rain on Me” (2020)?13The Battery’s Down (2009)

How’s this for a throwback? For Ariana Grande’s first proper television billing we have to go all the way back to 2009. That’s right, four whole years before she made her Billboard Hot 100 debut with “The Way” (with Mac Miller).

In the “Bad Bad News” episode (season two, episode two) of Connor Gallagher’s The Battery’s Down — a 2008 musical comedy series — Grande is billed as “Bat Mitzvah Riffer.” Unsurprisingly, she doesn’t really do much outside of belting out some ridiculous high notes in an appearance that lasts just half a minute, but at least she sounded great while doing so!

12Family Guy (2014)

Given that this is just a cameo, Grande’s appearance on Family Guy just barely makes this list. Nonetheless, her nod to her Italian heritage makes it memorable enough. In “Mom’s the Word,” episode 12 of season 12 of Family Guy, Grande voices one of the Italian next-door neighbors that Stewie and Brian eavesdrop on.

In a way, this Family Guy cameo foreshadowed Grande’s eventual collaboration with a fellow Italian-American pop icon. Remember when she and Lady Gaga topped the Billboard Hot 100 with their Grammy-winning dance-pop anthem “Rain on Me” (2020)?

11Zoolander 2 (2016)

In 2016, the same year Grande unleashed her Grammy-nominated Dangerous Woman LP, Ben Stiller finally unveiled the long-awaited sequel to 2001’s Zoolander. Appearing alongside Stiller, Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell, Penélope Cruz and Kristen Wiig, Grande made a cameo as SM Girl. She seduces Owen Wilson’s character while donning a black latex ensemble similar to the bunny ear-leotard combo she frequently wore during the Dangerous Woman era. Again, not really a showcase of her skills, but this cameo does speak to how strong Grande’s brand had grown by 2016.

Have you ever wondered if Ariana Grande and Jennette McCurdy ever teamed up to act outside of their hit Nickelodeon series, the answer is yes! Both Sam & Cat leads appeared in the 2013 American English dub of 2011’s Snowflake, the White Gorilla.

Grande voices the titular character in the film, which explores Snowflake’s — the only white gorilla in the world — attempt to escape the zoo and find a witch to help her become a “normal” gorilla. While the film is nothing more than a blip in the larger cultural consciousness, it provided Grande a chance to show off both hr voice-acting bona fides and her ability to lead a feature film.Underdogs (2016)13The Battery’s Down (2009)

How’s this for a throwback? For Ariana Grande’s first proper television billing we have to go all the way back to 2009. That’s right, four whole years before she made her Billboard Hot 100 debut with “The Way” (with Mac Miller).

In the “Bad Bad News” episode (season two, episode two) of Connor Gallagher’s The Battery’s Down — a 2008 musical comedy series — Grande is billed as “Bat Mitzvah Riffer.” Unsurprisingly, she doesn’t really do much outside of belting out some ridiculous high notes in an appearance that lasts just half a minute, but at least she sounded great while doing so!

12Family Guy (2014)

Given that this is just a cameo, Grande’s appearance on Family Guy just barely makes this list. Nonetheless, her nod to her Italian heritage makes it memorable enough. In “Mom’s the Word,” episode 12 of season 12 of Family Guy, Grande voices one of the Italian next-door neighbors that Stewie and Brian eavesdrop on.

In a way, this Family Guy cameo foreshadowed Grande’s eventual collaboration with a fellow Italian-American pop icon. Remember when she and Lady Gaga topped the Billboard Hot 100 with their Grammy-winning dance-pop anthem “Rain on Me” (2020)?

11Zoolander 2 (2016)

In 2016, the same year Grande unleashed her Grammy-nominated Dangerous Woman LP, Ben Stiller finally unveiled the long-awaited sequel to 2001’s Zoolander. Appearing alongside Stiller, Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell, Penélope Cruz and Kristen Wiig, Grande made a cameo as SM Girl. She seduces Owen Wilson’s character while donning a black latex ensemble similar to the bunny ear-leotard combo she frequently wore during the Dangerous Woman era. Again, not really a showcase of her skills, but this cameo does speak to how strong Grande’s brand had grown by 2016.

10Snowflake, the White Gorilla (2011)

Have you ever wondered if Ariana Grande and Jennette McCurdy ever teamed up to act outside of their hit Nickelodeon series, the answer is yes! Both Sam & Cat leads appeared in the 2013 American English dub of 2011’s Snowflake, the White Gorilla.

Grande voices the titular character in the film, which explores Snowflake’s — the only white gorilla in the world — attempt to escape the zoo and find a witch to help her become a “normal” gorilla. While the film is nothing more than a blip in the larger cultural consciousness, it provided Grande a chance to show off both hr voice-acting bona fides and her ability to lead a feature film.

9Underdogs (2016)

Here’s a little-known fact about Ariana Grande’s early career: she appeared in not one, but two English-language dubs of animated features. In 2016, an English-language dub of Underdogs finally arrived on Netflix and DVD following a scrapped theatrical release.

Underdogs follows a young boy named Amadeo on his journey to defend his crown as the town’s reigning table football king and finally score the girl of his dreams, Laura, voiced by Grande. Other notable Underdogs cast members include Shawn Mendes, Matthew Morrison, Katie Holmes, Bella Thorne, Nicholas Hoult, Brooklyn Beckham, Mel Brooks and Jay Pharaoh. Panned by critics and quietly offloaded onto streaming, Underdogs was far from a success. At the very least, Grande showed some improvement from her last voice-acting gig.Winx Club (2013-2014)

When it came time to revive Winx Club Stateside, Nickelodeon knew to tap Victorious co-stars and BFFs Liz Gillies and Ariana Grande.

The “Positions” singer voiced Princess Diaspro for twelve episodes between 2013 and 2014. A certified mean girl, Princess Diaspro is one of Winx Club’s most conniving characters — especially when it comes to getting in the way of her ex-fiancé and his new girlfriend. Due to scheduling conflicts, Grande could not return for the show’s sixth season, so she was recast with Cassandra Lee Morris.