Ariana Grande stuns Drew Barrymore with heartfelt message during 'Wicked' interview

Ariana Grande is defying expectations with Drew Barrymore.

During an appearance on "The Drew Barrymore Show" Thursday, the "Wicked" star had an emotional heart-to-heart with host Drew Barrymore. While participating in the talk show's "Silly Questions" segment, Grande ? a former child star herself ? took a moment to share her admiration for Barrymore as a public figure.

"I don't know too much about what your relationship has been to this industry the whole time, but I do know what you have shared publicly about it, and I just have to say, it can be ugly sometimes," Grande told Barrymore.

"Your strength and your heart and who you are, the light that you bring and your ability to dance in the rain and preserve that childlike wonder is such a gift."

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A visibly emotional Barrymore told Grande that as a longtime fan of the pop star, she is "so proud that my daughters and I love you so much."

"You're such a good person, and what you've done with this film ('Wicked') and your life and your work is ... you've shown that no matter what ? because it can be dark and ugly sometimes ? is that you just find that beauty," Barrymore said.

She added: "You put out a film that literally, in this world, brings people together. Do you know what an accomplishment that is? Oh my God!"

Grande stars as Glinda opposite Cynthia Erivo's Elphaba in "Wicked," the record-setting film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical.

Drew Barrymore surprises 'Wicked' star Ariana Grande with antique Glinda wand

Prior to kicking off the "Silly Questions" segment with Grande, Barrymore gave the "Wicked" star an emotional surprise — Glinda's original wand from the iconic 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz."

Barrymore said the wand was previously owned by the Smithsonian before moving to private hands, but the museum loaned the antique piece to "The Drew Barrymore Show."

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The gesture rendered the pop star speechless for a beat before she gathered herself. "Are you serious right now?" Grande then jokingly walked away with the wand: "Thank you guys, it's been fun."

Grande and Erivo have been open about how emotional they have been on the press tour for "Wicked," calling the experience of filming the movie "life changing."

"People think we need to go to an asylum. People think we need to be locked up," Grande told Buzzfeed UK last month.

"We have therapists. This is good. We're just really happy," Erivo said. Grande added: "We're fine. We're just grateful people."

Last month, "Wicked" debuted with $114 million in the U.S. and Canada and $164.2 million globally, a record for a Broadway musical adaptation, and had one of the highest-grossing second weekends ever.

It was the biggest opening weekend for a film based on a Broadway musical, ahead of the global debut of Universal's 2012 release "Les Miserables," according to the studio.

With "Gladiator II," an informal double feature dubbed "Glicked" by fans, the films brought in a combined $169.5 million at domestic theaters, helping lift the weekend box office to $201.9 million. It's the highest-grossing weekend in North America since the July opening of "Deadpool & Wolverine," according to Comscore.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

Contributing: Edward Segarra, USA TODAY; Lisa Richwine and Dawn Chmielewski, Reuters

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ariana Grande tells Drew Barrymore Hollywood 'can be ugly sometimes'