Cynthia Erivo is speaking out about a scary moment that happened last year. The Wicked star says the way people reacted to a red carpet incident in Singapore showed deep racial bias. She also admitted that the online response made her pull back from campaigning for Oscars.
The incident took place in November 2025 at the Singapore premiere of Wicked: For Good. A man named Johnson Wen jumped over a barrier and grabbed Ariana Grande. Erivo stepped in quickly to push the man away. The moment was captured on video and spread across social media.
Johnson Wen, a 26-year-old Australian citizen, later received a nine-day jail sentence. Reports confirmed he had a history of disrupting public events, including concerts by Katy Perry, The Weeknd, and The Chainsmokers.
Erivo Says She and Grande Were ‘Terrified’ During the Attack
In a new interview with Variety published on May 27, 2026, Erivo described what really happened when the man rushed toward them. She said the online videos did not show the full picture.
“Nobody moved. Nobody moved,” Erivo recalled. “So I moved because my brain went, ‘Get him away! Get him out of here!’”
She explained that the man would not let go of Grande right away. “And what people couldn’t see is that he wouldn’t let go [of Grande]. He wouldn’t let go. So I just kept pushing at him to get him off.”
Erivo made it clear that the situation was frightening for both of them. “A stranger is a stranger. Personal space is still personal space. It doesn’t belong to anyone, even if you feel you know the person. In that moment, we were all terrified.”
‘I Felt My Humanity Was Bastardised’
The online reaction after the incident hurt Erivo more than the attack itself. Social media users made jokes calling her Grande’s “bodyguard.” Memes and TikTok videos focused on her appearance, her bald head, and her physical build.
Erivo said these comments exposed a bigger problem. “I think that we haven’t really come to terms with the insidious nature of how we view Black women,” she told Variety.
She knew some people would reject her point. “And I’m sure people will read this and think, ‘Oh, for goodness’ sake, it’s not about that.’ But it is.”
She broke down exactly what was being mocked. “Because that’s what was being made fun of. It was my physique; it was my shape; it was the fact that I was bald; it was about what I looked like. And because of that, there was this assumption that I was bigger than my co-star and so I had to be controlling or protecting, and that was my role.”
Erivo strongly believes the reaction would have been different if the roles were switched. “I would hazard a guess that it would not have been the same had it been the other way around.”
She used a powerful phrase to describe how she felt. “I just felt like my humanity had been bastardised.”
The Incident Killed Her Interest in Oscar Campaigning
Erivo admitted that the backlash affected her desire to promote Wicked: For Good during awards season. The first Wicked film received 10 Academy Award nominations in 2025, including Best Actress for Erivo and Best Supporting Actress for Grande. The sequel received zero nominations at the 2026 Oscars.
When asked if the Singapore incident made her less willing to campaign, she said yes. “Maybe in a way it did, actually.”
She explained her reasoning. “I felt like something I did instinctively had been made to be something that it simply was not because of the way people see women who look like me, and because of the assumptions that are made, and I just didn’t want to be a part of that, really and truly.”
The whole experience wore her down. “I didn’t want to put myself through it. I didn’t feel like I deserved it.”
She also felt that critics had already decided against the sequel. “It felt like there was already a sort of upturned nose at the second instalment, even though we all knew there was a second film coming and we were just doing our jobs.”
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Erivo Addresses Rumors About Her Friendship with Grande
During the same interview, Erivo also talked about ongoing speculation regarding her relationship with Grande. Many people online have suggested the two are not actually friends.
Erivo found the rumors amusing but frustrating. “Lots of psychologists seated at home deciding who we were, what we were going through, what we were doing and why.”
She said people simply do not understand her. “I think that people didn’t really believe that we were actually friends. But that’s also because people don’t know me very well. If I’m a friend, then I’m a friend. If I’m not, then I’m not.”
Despite the rumors, Erivo confirmed that she and Grande remain close. They still text each other most days, even after the long Wicked press tour ended.
The first Wicked film earned $765 million worldwide at the box office and won two Oscars. The sequel, Wicked: For Good, has taken $541 million globally and received no Oscar nominations.
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