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(CNN) — Don’t mess with the “Wicked” witch.
Cynthia Erivo, who stars as Elphaba in the upcoming “Wicked” adaptation, slammed the various memes and fan-made takes on the film’s poster, which she said “degrades” and “erases” her involvement.
Earlier this month, fans were inspired to edit the latest poster for the “Wicked” film, which features Ariana Grande as Glinda whispering as Erivo looks ahead, to more closely resemble the musical’s original logo. In that illustration, Glinda cups her hand to speak into Elphaba’s ear as the green witch smirks, her eyes covered by her pointy black hat.
Many fans considered it an improvement on the official film poster, in which Erivo’s face is fully visible. In an Instagram story on Wednesday, Erivo said it was the “wildest, most offensive thing I have seen.”
“Our poster is an homage not an imitation, to edit my face and hide my eyes is to erase me,” she said. “And that is just deeply hurtful.”
In the same story, Erivo called out other “Wicked” memes that have circulated online, including one that made a crude joke about Elphaba’s anatomy and an AI-generated video of the two actresses fighting.
“None of this is funny. None of this is cute,” Erivo wrote. “It degrades me. It degrades us.”
Erivo, Grande and “Wicked” film director Jon M. Chu all re-shared the official poster on their Instagram stories on Wednesday. In his story, Chu wrote that Erivo is “(his) superhero.”
The run-up to the long-awaited premiere of “Wicked” has been rife with jokes, memes and a wide range of responses from fans. Some have questioned why the film’s trailers seem to obscure the fact that it’s both a musical and only part one of a planned duology — the first film will comprise the musical’s first act, culminating in the voice-shredding anthem “Defying Gravity.”
Part one of “Wicked” will arrive in theaters on November 22. The second film is expected in November 2025.
The-CNN-Wire
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