Cynthia Erivo has addressed the backlash she received after calling a fan-edited Wicked poster the "most offensive thing she'd ever seen."
As you're probably aware, the official poster for Wicked - a highly anticipated film adaptation starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda - was released, featuring Erivo's character looking at the camera with a direct gaze while Grande's Glinda whispers in her ear.
Though closely resembling the original Broadway musical artwork, fans noted some distinctions: Erivo’s eyes partially obscured by her hat, a vibrant red lip, and a subtle smirk.
Shortly after, a fan-created version surfaced online, adjusting the image to more closely echo the stage version.
Erivo, however, took to Instagram Stories, calling the edited image “the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen,” likening it to “that awful AI of us fighting.”
Alongside a repost of the altered poster, she added: “This is … equal to people posing the question, ‘Is your [skin] green?’”
Erivo continued: “None of this is funny. None of it is cute. It degrades me. It degrades us. The original poster is an ILLUSTRATION. I am a real-life human being, who chose to look right down the barrel of the camera to you, the viewer… because, without words, we communicate with our eyes.”
Calling the alteration “hurtful,” Erivo added: “Our poster is an homage, not an imitation. To edit my face and hide my eyes is to erase me.”
To reinforce her stance, Erivo shared the original poster once more, captioning it: “Let me put this right here, to remind you and cleanse your palette.”
Following the backlash, the fan who created the edited poster addressed the controversy on X (formerly Twitter).
“The last few days have been wild,” they wrote, noting that reactions “were largely overblown.”
“This is, and always was, an innocent fan edit to pay homage to the original Broadway poster, and there’s nothing wrong with that,” they continued, adding that fan posters are a longstanding tradition.
The fan clarified: “No AI tools were used in the creation,” and expressed: “While Cynthia is valid in having her feelings on the matter, I’m also valid in wanting to keep my version of the poster up as I truly meant no harm.”
In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Erivo addressed her reaction, explaining it “wasn’t necessarily a clapback.”
“I’m really protective of the role,” she shared with ET. “I am passionate about it, and I know that the fans are passionate about it, and I think, for me, it was just like a human moment of wanting to protect little Elphaba. It was a human moment.”
Reflecting on the incident, she added: “I probably should’ve called my friends, but it’s fine.”
Perhaps it can all be put to bed now?