It was the FaceTime call heard 'round the Consuelos household.
Imagine picking up your phone, expecting to see your wife, but instead, you're staring at a pop megastar. That is exactly what happened when Kelly Ripa as Ariana Grande became the viral moment nobody saw coming during the 2025 Oscars season.
Honestly, the resemblance was so striking it moved past "good costume" territory and straight into "uncanny valley."
The Transformation: How Kelly Became "Kel-inda"
This wasn't just a blonde wig and some pink lipstick. For the Live with Kelly and Mark annual "After the Oscars" special, Ripa went full method. She teamed up with makeup artist Kristofer Buckle—who actually knows Ariana personally—and hairstylist Ryan Trygstad to pull off a multi-hour metamorphosis.
They didn't just mimic the look; they engineered it.
Buckle used intricate contouring and even facial prosthetics to reshape Ripa’s bone structure. They lightened her eyebrows until they were nearly invisible, recreated Grande’s signature "Glinda" pout with nude-pink liner, and added heavy lashings of pale pink shimmer.
By the time they were done, the 54-year-old talk show host had effectively vanished. In her place stood a 31-year-old Glinda the Good Witch.
💡 You might also like: Greatest Rock and Roll Singers of All Time: Why the Legends Still Own the Mic
Pranking the Family
Kelly didn't wait for the cameras to roll to test out the look. She decided to mess with her husband, Mark Consuelos, first.
Her assistant called Mark, telling him that Kelly wanted him to "say hello to Ariana Grande" over FaceTime. Mark later admitted he was actually a little annoyed. He was busy, he wasn't prepared to talk to a superstar, and he was doing that "fake nice" thing we all do when we're caught off guard.
"I truly thought that was Grande," Mark told PEOPLE. "It was freaky!"
She didn't stop there. She also FaceTimed her 23-year-old daughter, Lola Consuelos, and her best friend. Both of them were completely fooled. When your own kid can’t tell it’s you, you know the makeup department deserves a raise.
Why the Internet Was "Terrified"
While the craftsmanship was undeniably brilliant, the internet's reaction was... mixed.
When Kelly posted the time-lapse video of the transformation to her Instagram, the comments section became a chaotic war zone of awe and genuine discomfort. Some fans called it "disturbing" and "creepy."
📖 Related: Ted Nugent State of Shock: Why This 1979 Album Divides Fans Today
- "This is so disturbing and amazing. I'm so conflicted," one user wrote.
- Others mentioned the "uncanny valley" effect—where something looks too much like a human (or a specific person) but feels slightly "off," triggering a biological "ick" response.
- One Reddit thread even compared the look to a "skin suit."
But hey, that's the mark of a great transformation, right? If you don't look like yourself anymore, you've succeeded. Ripa leaned into the role, lip-syncing to "Popular" and "Defying Gravity" while being edited into actual scenes from the Wicked film trailer.
She even started calling herself "Kel-inda."
What Did Ariana Grande Think?
Usually, when a celebrity does a high-profile parody of another star, there’s a bit of tension. Not here.
According to Kelly, the real Ariana Grande was a fan. Kristofer Buckle, the bridge between the two stars, revealed that Ariana actually left him a voicemail gushing about how amazing the transformation was.
"I mean, the alternative is a horrible feeling," Ripa joked during her post-Oscars coverage. Imagine getting a call from Ariana Grande saying, "What did you do to my face?" Luckily, that didn't happen.
The "After the Oscars" Tradition
Kelly Ripa as Ariana Grande wasn't just a random dress-up day. It's part of a long-standing Live tradition where the hosts recreate the year’s biggest cinematic moments.
👉 See also: Mike Judge Presents: Tales from the Tour Bus Explained (Simply)
In the same 2025 special:
- Mark Consuelos played Fiyero (originally Jonathan Bailey).
- He joked about being "Mark Consuelos with highlights."
- They used green screens to place themselves directly into the Land of Oz.
The special, which films at the Dolby Theatre just hours after the Academy Awards wrap, is known for its high energy and high-budget spoofs. But the Wicked parody stands out because of the sheer technical skill involved in the makeup.
Actionable Takeaways for Your Next Costume
If you're looking to pull off a "Kelly Ripa" level transformation (whether it's for Halloween or just to prank your spouse), here is what the pros did:
- Focus on the Brows: To get that Ariana/Glinda look, you have to almost erase your natural brows and redraw them higher and softer.
- Contour the Nose: Use a "button nose" technique with heavy highlighter on the tip to mimic the specific facial structure seen in the movie.
- The Signature Smile: Kelly practiced Ariana’s specific "side-smirk" and eye squint. The physical acting is 50% of the illusion.
- Lighting Matters: If you’re doing a reveal on video, use a ring light. It flattens the skin and makes prosthetics blend more naturally into the face.
The Kelly Ripa as Ariana Grande moment was a masterclass in celebrity satire. It showed that even after decades on TV, Kelly still knows how to surprise her audience—and her husband. Whether you found it "magical" or "creepy," you definitely couldn't look away.
To see the full transformation yourself, you can check out the archival clips from the Live with Kelly and Mark YouTube channel or Ripa's Instagram reels from February 2025.