From borderline harassment to full-on stalking, fans have been known to go above and beyond when it comes to their favorite celebrities. For a while, celebrities have been expected to essentially sit back and take it, but a new generation brings new beliefs. Stars like Chappell Roan have been clapping back and setting boundaries for themselves. But is that the case with Cynthia Erivo, who is playing Elphaba in the new “Wicked” movie? With the premiere just around the corner, issues were bound to arise with this beloved stage-to-movie adaptation.
“Wicked” has been a staple on Broadway since 2003 and is one of the most popular musicals to ever hit Broadway. In an homage to its history, the “Wicked” movie just released its own version of the iconic poster that can be seen all throughout New York, highlighting the lead actresses, Erivo and Ariana Grande, in their starring roles as Elphaba and Glinda. Although it pays direct tribute to the Broadway poster, there are some small differences, such as the color of Elphaba’s lips, the position of Glinda’s hand and, most notably, being able to see Elphaba’s eyes. Now, the issue arises with a fan-edited version of the movie poster that changed these small differences to better match that of the original. One might not think too much about it at a passing glance, given that fans are known for making their own edits, especially when it comes to pre-established franchises. But Cynthia Erivo did take notice, and took to her Instagram to lay it all down for us about how covering her eyes was extremely offensive.
Now, there are definitely lines that fans of popular media should not cross, but fan edits of promo material are not one of them. Fans are the moving force behind any popular media and making edits creates more discourse about the project, and, to a certain extent, allows the fan to be involved. Their intent should also play a role. They were not doing this edit to offend but to make it more closely resemble that of the original. That being said, there is definitely a double standard. Notice that in the original poster, Glinda is also wearing a witch hat and a long-sleeved dress, but in the fan edits all they changed on Grande was the placement of the hand, which is inarguably oddly placed.
Despite the double standard, the creator of the fan edit did not do it maliciously, but to share their love of the source material, and after discovering it offended Erivo, they promptly deleted it. However, they eventually put it back up, stating, “While I deleted initially as I felt it was the right thing to do, fan posters have been around for as long as movies have existed. I never meant to cause any harm and the poster is just a homage to the original Broadway poster, just like the movie’s recreation is.” Erivo is valid in her feelings and reactions, but fan edits are a given for any popular media. The creator of the controversial fan poster concluded by saying, “Also, I will say that Cynthia is valid in having her feelings on the matter, and I’m also valid in wanting to keep my version of the poster up as I truly meant no harm with it and just made it as a way to show love for the original. Both can be true.”
Although Erivo’s comments can be seen as an overreaction, we cannot truly determine how something made her feel unless we are in her shoes. It would be ignorant to ignore the fact that there is a double standard with Erivo being a Black actress taking on an iconic role that was predominately portrayed by white women. And there is a lot of backlash that comes with that. But luckily, the majority of fans have been extremely excited for her to star as Elphaba and cannot wait to see her take on the role. Fans are a huge part of the success of any project, especially an adaptation. They just want to be involved and share their love for their favorite media, and while there are ways they can take it too far, this is not the case for the fan-edited “Wicked” poster.
