Ariana Grande responds to fan-made Wicked poster criticism

[hewontgo]

Ariana Grande weighed in on 'Wicked' fan edits and AI content after her costar Cynthia Erivo called out the fan art on social media. https://t.co/L22LMmepaA
- Entertainment Weekly (@EW) October 22, 2024

Ariana Grande weighed in on her Wicked costar Cynthia Erivo's criticism of fan edits and AI content.
follow up this post

“I think it’s very

Comments

[lurkurheartout]

ok but what is the messy stuff that cynthia did that makes broadway fans not like her? what is the tea ontd?

[maryjanewatson]

i think it's this?

https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/a/jose-martinez/cynthia-erivo-addresses-backlash-over-past-tweets-allegedly-mocking-black-americans

[scriptedending]

She stepped into Great Comet drama, which is why I personally can't stand her.

To sum up: The show was running with Josh Groban and Denée Benton as the two leads, and a huge, diverse cast - pretty expensive show to run. When Josh left, they played around with recasting his role. They had the original creator step in for a bit, and then they had Oak Onaodowan of Hamilton take over the role.

Tickets still weren't selling, even after some other stunt casting (Ingrid Michaelson in one of the other roles, for example), and the production was close to closing. They hired Mandy Patinkin to take over the lead role toward the end of Oak's run, to keep the show running, and he did not take that well. Cynthia accused the production of racism, and Mandy didn't wanna get involved at all after that, so the show just closed. It was a great show, tons of people lost jobs, and while it would have closed eventually with or without her, it still fucking sucked.

[quinnmorgendorf]

I saw the penultimate show in 2017 with Dave Malloy playing Pierre, and it's still one of my favorite live theater experiences. It was such a special show and deserved a longer run and I still side-eye Cynthia, Oak, and Rafael Casal for their campaign against it.

[josiefier]

So many words to say nothing

[skyler_white_yo]

Did AI write her response? What did I just read

[tetrazzinichikn]

Nah, this is what AI would have said and it’s soooo much better (while still saying nothing):

"I've seen the conversations around the fan-made Wicked poster, and I want to acknowledge everyone’s passion and creativity. We’re all so deeply committed to bringing these beloved characters to life, and I truly appreciate the excitement from fans who care as much as we do. Cynthia has poured her heart into this role, and it’s important to honor her feelings and perspective. Let’s continue to lift each other up with kindness and focus on celebrating this journey we’re all taking together to share Wicked with the world."

[aleksie]

I wrote the same thing as you!

Maybe Ariana's next era is AIriana?

[v_is_for_violet]

“If things can go too far” omg it was a copy of a Broadway poster that’s been iconic worldwide for 20 years like…I’m all for actresses calling out fan art and AI that’s genuinely nasty like when that porny AI was made of Taylor but all this over a innocent fan edit is just crazy.

[genbu_no_miko24]

Compared to the Elvira response, this is pretty decent. Although I did hear in one of new breathy voices.

[normanikordei]

there’s a video of it and she was using the glinda voice lol

[genbu_no_miko24]

That's exactly the voice I heard in my head!