Grande, a household name in pop music, will be honored for her role in "Wicked" at the 2025 Palm Springs International Film Festival.
Kat Schuster, Patch Staff
PALM SPRINGS, CA — Global music sensation Ariana Grande will receive the Rising Star Award at the 2025 Palm Springs International Film Festival for her role in the 2024 film "Wicked."
On Jan. 3, Grande will join dozens of stars at the Palm Springs Convention Center to get her award for her characterization of Glinda in "Wicked," Jon M. Chu's screen adaptation of the long-running Broadway musical.
Years before Grande's meteoric rise as a pop star, she starred in a 2008 musical at the age of 13. At 31, Grande — billed in the movie as Grande-Butera — is receiving accolades for her role in a film that has shattered multiple box office benchmarks for musicals. The film surpassed the worldwide opening of "Les Misérables" in 2012, the previous record-holder, by approximately $60 million.
"Ariana Grande's portrayal of Glinda elevates her to new heights with a powerful acting performance that beautifully combines her outstanding musical talent, brilliant characterization and impeccable comedic timing," festival chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi said in a statement. "Ariana is an iconic global performer, who has seamlessly transitioned to film in her first major starring role, proving herself to be a multifaceted and undeniable talent. This role is certain to be the beginning of the many accolades she will garner throughout her acting career."
The role also netted Grande recognition as one of eight Virtuoso Award honorees at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
Find out what's happening in Palm Desertwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
"Wicked", released in the U.S. on Nov. 22 and stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba (The Wicked Witch of the West) as well as Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode and Peter Dinklage.
Grande has long been a household name in music, acquiring prestige such as a pair of Grammy Awards, one for the 2018 album "Sweetener" and another Grammy for her 2020 collaboration with Lady Gaga, "Rain on Me." Currently, she is Spotify's most streamed artist.
While she has released seven consecutive Platinum albums over nearly 10 years — even becoming the first artist to hold the top three spots on the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time since The Beatles — Grande was an actress first. She took on a few roles in series and films such as "The Battery's Down" and "Snowflake, the White Gorilla" before taking on a role in the Nickelodeon series "iPary with Victorious."
More recently, she played a role in 2021 global warming comedy "Don't Look Up."
At the Palm Springs Film Festival, Grande will join stars Kieran Culkin (Breakthrough Performer Award), Angelina Jolie (Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress), Nicole Kidman (International Star Award), Adrien Brody (Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor), the cast of "Conclave" (Ensemble Performance Award), Mikey Madison (Breakthrough Performance Award), Colman Domingo (Spotlight Award, Actor) and the cast and director of Netflix's "Emilia Pérez" (Vanguard Award) as announced recipients of honors at PSIFF 2025.
Alicia Vikander, Gal Gadot, Terrence Howard, Anna Kendrick, Scarlett Johansson and Jennifer Lawrence were all previous recipients of the Rising Star Award.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.