Cynthia Erivo’s Reflections on Wicked and the Impact of Racial Stereotypes
Cynthia Erivo, known for her iconic role in the Wicked films, has recently shared her thoughts on moving beyond the hit musical franchise. The 39-year-old actress is now focusing on new projects and expressing a desire to shift the conversation away from her time in Wicked. However, her journey with the franchise has not been without challenges.
One of the more contentious aspects of her experience was the emergence of memes that portrayed her in an unusual light during the Wicked press tour. These memes, often depicting Erivo as Ariana Grande’s “bodyguard,” were initially seen as lighthearted by many fans. But for Erivo, they carried a deeper, more troubling implication.
She believes that some of these memes were racially charged, reflecting negative stereotypes about Black women. “I think that we haven’t really come to terms with the insidious nature of how we view Black women,” she told Variety. “It was my physique; it was my shape; it was the fact that I was bald; it was about what I looked like. And because of that, there was this assumption that I was bigger than my co-star and so I had to be controlling or protecting, and that was my role.”
Erivo also pointed out that the dynamic might have been different if the roles were reversed. “I would hazard a guess that it would not have been the same had it been the other way around.”
A Close Bond and Public Moments
During both the Wicked and Wicked: For Good press tours, Erivo and Grande were often seen together, with their close relationship becoming a topic of interest. Their bond was highlighted by moments such as clasping hands and posing cheek-to-cheek, which quickly went viral.
Grande, who is 32, has openly admitted that she often needs to hold Erivo’s hand during events. “I do, I do. I channel a lot of energy through my hands. And so I’m always holding a hand,” she said during a chat on the podcast Good Hang with Amy Poehler.
During the Wicked press tour in late 2024, Grande was seen holding onto Erivo’s finger, a gesture that sparked widespread attention. “Yeah, because I didn’t know what the f*** was going on,” Grande admitted. “I just wanted to be supportive. It felt sweet. It felt beautiful.”
A Moment of Crisis and Protection
The pair’s bond was further tested when a fan lunged at Grande during the Wicked: For Good Asia-Pacific premiere in Singapore last November. Erivo rushed to her rescue, a moment that cemented their close relationship. Grande later described the incident as deeply unsettling.
The fan, identified as 26-year-old Australian Johnson Wen, was arrested and charged with public nuisance. He was sentenced to nine days in jail and banned from re-entering Singapore.
Speaking to Variety, Erivo expressed that the experience, along with the way the moment was turned into a meme, made her reconsider her involvement in campaigning for an Oscar for the second Wicked film.
“I just felt like my humanity had been bastardized,” she said. “I felt like something I did instinctively had been made to be something that it simply was not because of the way people see women who look like me.”
Moving Forward
Erivo now says that she is done discussing Wicked and is eager to focus on her upcoming projects. During a game of “Does Cynthia Erivo know her lines?” with Variety, she expressed frustration with being asked about Wicked again.
“Is that okay? I love Wicked, but I’ve just talked about it ad nauseam,” she said.
Currently, Erivo is wrapping up her theatrical stint in Dracula in London’s West End. She has several movie projects in the works, including the all-black fantasy film Children of Blood and Bone and the British drama Prima Facie.
