Cythia Erivo slams edited 'Wicked' poster

Actor calls out fans' attempt to alter filmic homage

Broadway-adapted film Wicked (2024) has been the talk of the town for quite some time now, given the original media's compelling message for social outcasts and the upcoming film's induction of a star cast to bring it to life on the big screen.

After Universal Studios paid homage to the original poster by releasing a filmic version with leads Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, fans on social media pointed out that the original stylistic poster was designed with different poses.

Glinda's hand was raised higher, whereas half of Elphaba's face was shrouded by the shadow of the conical hat, with only her red-lipped smirk being visible. While Ariana's Glinda didn't pose too differently, fans expressed that Cynthia's eyes were visible and her lips were tinted green, starkly unlike the artistic elements of the original poster.

An edit soon circulated online, aiming to mend the differences and bring them closer to what was originally intended. Upset by the changes made by enthusiasts, Cynthia shared the edit on her Instagram Stories and wrote, "This is the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen."

She further conveyed, "None of this is funny. None of it is cute. It degrades me. It degrades us." She also stressed, "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."

The 37-year-old actor concluded, "Our poster is an homage, not an imitation. To edit my face and to hide my eyes is to erase me. And that is just deeply hurtful."

After Cynthia disabled comments under her own post of the official posters, fans took to venting in the comments section of the edited poster. "Half of Ariana's face is gone too. This isn't about race, nor about erasing Cynthia. This is simply just edited to look like the original Wicked poster," said a user.

Another argued, "You're all saying it's 'not that serious', but imagine the entire world making a meme sexualising you. It may be a joke to you, but I completely understand where Cynthia is coming from and you all should respect that too."