Ariana Grande Finally Ditched Glinda Pink In Favor Of This Hot Fall 2025 Trend At VMAs

It's been half a decade since Ariana Grande last hit the MTV VMAs red carpet. And since then, the "Side to Side" singer has served up a plethora of pink looks, often wearing the shade head-to-toe to celebrate her "Wicked" character Glinda. She's one of the celebrities that nailed method dressing with her many bouncy, girly looks that channeled the good witch. But for her return to the 2025 VMAs, where she was up for seven moonperson trophies and was enlisted to present Mariah Carey with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award, Grande went more on-trend and less on-character.

With the aid of her longtime stylist Law Roach, Grande opted for a custom Fendi dress in one of the classic comeback trends of 2025: polka dots, which have appeared in the collections of everyone from Balmain to Isabel Marant. The column gown featured a sweetheart neckline, peplum waist, and slit up the back. While it was definitely a departure from the overwhelming pink she wore to promote the first "Wicked" movie in 2024, there were still elements of Glinda thrown in, suggesting that Grande may lean back into method dressing to promote "Wicked: For Good," which hits theaters November 21.

Just because Ariana Grande wore polka dots instead of all-over pink for the 2025 VMAs doesn't mean she's completely shutting out Glinda as style inspiration. Perhaps we can expect more of an outfit tour that melds current trends with typical Ariana Grande outfits that scream Glinda from "Wicked," as she promotes the second installment of the musical-turned-film.

For starters, the VMAs dress featured a peplum silhouette, which is something Grande wore while promoting the first "Wicked." Then there's the peplum's base color: a soft pink. We might even go so far as to suggest that peplum is reminiscent of the bubble skirt, and everybody knows bubbles are Glinda's preferred method of transportation.

Let's also take the beauty elements into account. For the "Into You" artist's hair, stylist Alyx Liu created a high ponytail (very Glinda), and tied a polka-dot bow in it to coordinate with the column gown. Makeup artist Michael Anthony also used a soft-pink eyeshadow on the lids and glossy pink for lips. Touches of Glinda without the bold head-to-toe pinkness signify both "Wicked" and Ariana 2.0, and we're here for it.