The upcoming film adaptation of Wicked, inspired by The Wizard of Oz and based on Gregory Maguire’s novel of the same name, will feature the actress alongside Ariana Grande. Erivo shared a fan-edited Wicked poster on her Instagram Story on October 16, an attempt to recreate the graphic poster that the original Broadway production used for years.

Erivo characterized the modified image on her Instagram Stories as the ‘wildest, most disrespectful thing I have seen.’ “None of this is funny.” None of it is cute. It lowers me. “It degrades us,” she said. The original poster served as an illustration. 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 deeply hurtful,” she continued.

Since then, Erivo has discussed her decision to voice her opinion on the billboard with Entertainment Tonight at the 2024 CFDA Fashion A “I’m passionate about it, and I know the fans are passionate about it. For me, it was just like a human moment of wanting to protect little Elphaba, and it was like a human moment.”
“I probably should have called my friends, but it’s fine,” she said.
Erivo’s first reaction to the fan-edited image sparked controversy online, with some people dismissing it as an overreaction and others defending her. “If I see one more tweet saying ‘she’s doing too much’ or ‘it’s just a poster’…they paid homage to the Broadway poster, but that doesn’t give YOU the right to edit her face from the poster,” expressed a member of the public. Another person said, “I don’t care how much you like the original poster. For a show about prejudice and the color of a young woman’s skin, the racism could not be more obvious.” You don’t deserve this film.”

Ariana Grande also addressed the viral fan-edit and her co-star’s reaction, telling Variety at the Academy Museum Gala on October 19, “This is something that is so much bigger than us, and the fans are going to have fun and make their edits.” “I have so much respect for my sister Cynthia, and I love her so much,” she told me. “It’s basically a large adjustment period. There’s so much excitement about something much greater than ourselves.”