Here at NewBeauty, we talk about celebrity beauty transformations all the time, whether it’s an A-lister debuting a dramatic new hair color or stepping out with full glam for a red carpet event. But it’s not every day that a big-name star undergoes a full-blown theatrical makeover. Enter Kelly Ripa, who just transformed into Glinda, specifically, Ariana Grande’s version of the Wicked character in the Oscar-nominated blockbuster—and the before-and-after is a must-see.
If we hadn’t seen it ourselves, we might not have believed it. Ripa shared an Instagram Reel capturing the transformation, in which celebrity makeup artist Kristofer Buckle and celebrity hairstylist Ryan Trygstad turned her into Grande’s bonafide doppelgänger. She credited them in the caption, writing, “Follow me beyond Oz into the land of make believe. Let’s hear it for the actual wizards.” Check out the epic time-lapse video for yourself, below.
The transformation was for a special segment of Live With Kelly and Mark, airing the day after the Oscars on Monday, March 3, and the sneak peek has already sent social media into a frenzy. Fans flooded the comments of Ripa’s post to share their amazement. “This is so disturbing and amazing,” one person candidly wrote. “I’m so conflicted. Man, people are so dang talented.” Even Lisa Rinna chimed in, writing, “OMG You became her!” A third simply declared, “This is ART!”
The reaction was just as intense over on Buckle’s Instagram, where people raced to the comments section thinking the transformation was actually Grande. Even Buckle himself weighed in, commenting on his own post, “I hope I did Ariana justice.” Fans were quick to reassure him. “For real, I thought it was Ariana!” one person wrote. Another added, “I legit thought it was Ariana. I was like, ‘Oh, he did Ariana’s face,’ then I realized it was Kelly!”
