Cynthia Erivo recently shared her frustration after a fan-edited version of a Wicked poster gained attention online.
In the film adaptation of the beloved Broadway musical, Erivo portrays Elphaba alongside Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey, known from Bridgerton.
In anticipation of the movie’s release on Friday, November 22, Universal Studios has been actively promoting the film, which includes unveiling a poster featuring Erivo and Grande in their respective roles.
However, it wasn’t long before a fan modified the poster to more closely resemble the original musical’s well-known design.
Additionally, an AI-generated video surfaced depicting Erivo and Grande as Elphaba and Glinda in a fictional confrontation.
Erivo addressed these fan creations, expressing her displeasure with the alterations.
She described the fan-edited poster as the “wildest, most offensive thing I have seen,” and expressed her thoughts by stating: “None of this is funny. None of it is cute. It degrades me. It degrades us.”
She further explained: “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.
“Our poster is an homage not an imitation, to edit my face and hide my eyes is to erase me. And that is just deeply hurtful.”
Reflecting on her initial response, Erivo referred to it as a ‘little human moment.’
She shared with PEOPLE: “Having that passion for what this piece is and loving it so much and knowing how much I want to communicate through Elphaba, that’s probably where that came from.”
She added: “And so in my little human moment I had … I fell out on the internet, when really I should have just picked up my phone and called a friend.”
Emphasizing the humanity behind her reaction, Erivo continued, “We have these human moments, and me being human and sensitive, I shared something that I think is part of the little girl in me. I realize that there are so many people who love this just as much as I do.”
When speaking to Entertainment Tonight during the 2024 CFDA Fashion Awards on October 28, Erivo reiterated her sentiments.
“I’m passionate about it and I know the fans are passionate about it and I think for me it was just like a human moment of wanting to protect little Elphaba, and it was like a human moment,” she explained.
Wicked is set to premiere in theaters this Friday, November 22.