
TL;DR Summary:
Cynthia Erivo expressed strong disappointment over a fan-edited "Wicked" movie poster that altered her promotional image as Elphaba. The edit, which went viral on TikTok, modified the official poster to resemble the iconic Broadway version, covering Erivo's eyes. Erivo shared her reaction on Instagram, calling the edit "wildly offensive" and comparing it to other disrespectful portrayals. She emphasized that the movie poster is an "homage, not an imitation" and noted that altering her face erases her humanity and intent. Erivo reposted the original poster, reaffirming her view on its integrity and intent.
Cynthia Erivo Called A Fan Edit Of A "Wicked" Poster "Deeply Hurtful"
Cynthia Erivo weighed in on recent viral edits of Wicked content, and she's not happy.Kristina Bumphrey / Variety via Getty Images
Recently, Universal dropped its latest promotional image for the upcoming musical movie — starring Cynthia as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda.
Universal/ Courtesy Everett Collection
Of course, it's a direct homage to the iconic Broadway musical poster, which is a version of an illustration made for the original San Francisco run of the show.
Bruce Glikas / Bruce Glikas / WireImage
However, in a viral TikTok that's been viewed over 7 million times called "Fixing the Wicked movie poster," user @Ferlozar edited Universal's poster to resemble the musical version more — i.e. with Cynthia's eyes covered and Ariana's hands higher.
@ferlozar / Universal / Via tiktok.com
And Cynthia sure saw that edited version, as she posted it on to her Instagram story along with the words, "This is the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen, equal to that awful AI of us fighting, equal to people posing the question, 'is your ***** green.'"
Universal/ Courtesy Everett Collection / Via Instagram: @cynthiaerivo
"None of this is funny. None of this 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," she continued.
niversal Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection
"Our poster is an homage not an imitation, to edit my face and hide my eyes is to erase me. And that is deeply hurtful," the Emmy, Tony, and Grammy winner noted.
Marleen Moise / Getty Images
Reposting the original, she added, "Let me put this right here, to remind you and cleanse your palette."
Universal/ Courtesy Everett Collection / Via Instagram: @cynthiaerivo
It's worth noting that two days ago, Cynthia shared a fan edit of her as Elphaba in a war zone on to her Instagram story.