Cynthia Erivo blames racist reaction to Ariana Grande incident for stepping back from awards season
Cynthia Erivo has revealed online reactions following her instinctive defence of Ariana Grande at a film premiere caused her to step back from pursuing Academy Award recognition for Wicked: For Good.
The Tony Award winner told Variety social media content targeting her appearance left her feeling deeply wounded, describing the experience as having her "humanity bastardised" by those who viewed her through a racist lens.
"I think maybe in a way it did, actually," Ms Erivo said when asked whether the episode affected her Oscar campaign approach.
Ms Erivo was walking alongside Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh and Jeff Goldblum on a decorative yellow brick road at Universal Studios Singapore when Johnson Wen, a man with a history of disrupting public events, vaulted over a barrier and rushed towards the group.
"Nobody moved. Nobody moved. So I moved because my brain went, 'Get him away! Get him out of here!'" Ms Erivo recalled.
The 39-year-old British actress revealed the situation was more alarming than footage showed, as Mr Wen refused to release his grip on the singer.
She said: "What people couldn't see is that he wouldn't let go. He wouldn't let go.
"So I just kept pushing at him to get him off.
The actress emphasised that everyone present was "terrified" during the confrontation.
Mr Wen was subsequently sentenced to nine days in jail.
The social media response to the incident drew sharp criticism from Ms Erivo, who objected to suggestions she had acted as Ms Grande's "bodyguard".
"I think that we haven't really come to terms with the insidious nature of how we view Black women," she told Variety.
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"And I'm sure people will read this and think, 'Oh, for goodness sake, it's not about that.' But it is."
Ms Erivo said the mockery centred on her physical appearance.
"It was my physique; it was my shape; it was the fact that I was bald; it was about what I looked like," she explained.
The actress argued assumptions about her being "bigger than my co-star" led people to cast her in a protective role.
"I would hazard a guess that it would not have been the same had it been the other way around," she added.
The original Wicked film earned $765million (£571millon) at the global box office following its 2024 release and claimed two Oscars.
Its sequel performed considerably less well, taking $541million (£404million) worldwide and receiving no Academy Award nominations.
Ms Erivo said the online backlash left her unwilling to engage with the awards process.
"I just felt like my humanity had been bastardised," she said.
"It 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."
"I didn't want to put myself through it.
"I didn't feel like I deserved it."
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