‘Wicked’ star Ariana Grande finds AI ‘troublesome’ after fan-edited posters cause controversy

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“Wicked” star Ariana Grande is uncertain about artificial intelligence after her co-star Cynthia Erivo felt insulted by fan edits of the poster for the upcoming musical.
“I think it’s very complicated because I find AI so conflicting and troublesome sometimes, but I think it’s just kind of such a massive adjustment period,” Grande told Variety at the Academy Museum Gala last Saturday.
She continued, “This is something that is so much bigger than us, and the fans are gonna have fun and make their edits.”
“And I have so much respect for my sister, Cynthia, and I love her so much. It’s just a big adjustment period. It’s so much stimulation about something that’s so much bigger than us.”
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Ariana Grande said she finds AI “so conflicting and troublesome sometimes,” reacting to the controversy surrounding fan-edited posters of her and “Wicked” co-star Cynthia Erivo. (Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)
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Several posters for the film have been released, with one of the more recent ones evoking the original Broadway poster, showing Grande’s character Glinda whispering into the ear of Erivo’s Elphaba. The key difference on the movie poster is that unlike Broadway’s version, you can clearly see Erivo’s eyes under her Elphaba hat.
Some fans altered the movie version to more closely match the Broadway one, including lowering Erivo’s hat to cover her eyes.
Erivo spoke out against fan edits of the “Wicked” poster last Wednesday on social media.
“This is the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen equal to that awful AI of us fighting, equal to people posing the question ‘is your p—- green?” she wrote in a since expired Instagram story.
Cynthia Erivo spoke out against the fan-edits of “Wicked,” saying “this is the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen.” (Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)
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The “AI of us fighting” is an AI-generated animation that transforms the static poster into a cartoonish fight between the two women that went somewhat viral.
“None of this is funny. None of it is cute. It degrades me. It degrades us,” Erivo wrote.
“I think it’s very complicated because I find AI so conflicting and troublesome sometimes, but I think it’s just kind of such a massive adjustment period.”
Regarding the fan-edited poster, Erivo took particular issue with her eyes being covered.
“The original poster is an Illustration,” she wrote. “I am a real life human being, who chose to to look right down the barrel of the camera to you, the viewer …because, 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 just deeply hurtful.”
Erivo also called out an AI-generated animation of the “Wicked” poster that showed her and Grande fighting.  (Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
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Representatives for Grande and Erivo did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
According to Forbes, “Wicked” director John M. Chu showed his support for Erivo’s comments on his own Instagram story, sharing a screenshot of her statement and calling her his “superhero.”
Online, fans generally felt Erivo’s reaction was too intense for a fan-edited poster.
“Maybe I’m going to sound mean, but Cynthia needs to chill out because it’s not that serious, memes have always existed,” one person wrote.
Online, fans generally felt Erivo’s reaction was too intense for a fan-edited poster. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
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Another joked, “Insufferably self-serious is one of my favorite types of celebrity, so I’m very happy with Cynthia Erivo’s current choices.” 
A few defended Erivo, citing some of the backlash the actress faced with simply being cast in the role.
A few people defended Erivo’s post, saying she’s faced more than enough backlash, and was simply defending herself and Grande. (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
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“Since her casting, she’s faced an endless barrage of criticisms—from not being ‘right’ for the role because she’s not white, to not being ‘pretty enough,” one person wrote, adding, “Cynthia is asking people to see her as a human being first. In her post, she’s simply asking for respect—not just for herself but also for Ariana, who’s also faced unnecessary dragging for being herself in this role. The backlash against both of them speaks volumes about the pressure women, especially women of color, face when they dare to be in spaces that aren’t always welcoming.”
Additionally, some supported Erivo’s disapproval of AI, writing, “I for one am 100% backing Cynthia Erivo for her AI hatred.”