Cynthia Erivo addresses the viral edits of the Wicked movie poster. In a homage to the iconic poster advertising the Broadway musical, the movie adaptation released a poster of Glinda (Ariana Grande) whispering into the ear of Elphaba (Erivo). This led to fan edits that made the poster look more similar to the original Broadway version, where Elphaba's eyes are hidden by the shadow of the hat Glinda gives her in the Wicked story.

On Instagram stories, Erivo responds to the edits, describing them as "the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen" and that the edits are "deeply harmful." Erivo emphasized that the poster "is a homage, not an imitation" and that "to edit my face and hide my eyes is to erase me." In addition to the edits being degrading to her and Grande, she also explains that they are hurtful after she made the creative choice to look directly into the camera to communicate with her eyes. Check out Erivo's post below:

What This Means For Wicked

Change Is Part Of Adaptation

Erivo's post is an important reminder that the Wicked movies are adaptations and are inevitably going to make creative changes from the Broadway musical. Just as the movie poster has differences from the Broadway one, so will the actual movies. One of the most significant changes will be the length of the story, with the movies being split into two feature-length films, and the first movie having a two-hour and 40 more runtime, which is nearly the length of the full Broadway musical.

Those who want to see every aspect of the movies being identical to the musical will be setting themselves up for disappointment. As done with the poster, which is a homage to the original, the Wicked cast and creators cherish the Broadway musical and will be honoring it through the adaptations that they are bringing to life. It is possible to honor what has come before while also making changes, especially when a story is being adapted into a different artistic medium.

Our Take On Cynthia Erivo's Response

She Has Shared An Important Truth

Erivo sends a powerful message by taking a firm stance against the viral edits of the Wicked poster. She makes it clear that dehumanizing her and her co-stars will not be tolerated at the expense of making a movie poster look more similar to the Broadway one. There is no point in adapting any stories if the adaptations do not make any creative changes. The Wicked movies need to be given a chance to share the full vision of their adaptations, including the promotional material, and not have them be immediately condemned due to differences from what has come before.

Source: Cynthia Erivo/Instagram