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‘The Racism In the UK Media Is Evident’: ‘Wicked’ Star Cynthia Erivo Gets Pushed Aside for Ariana Grande In UK Newspapers Despite Being British 

Posted byBy Nicole Duncan-Smith | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

Everywhere one turns there is some sort of promotion for the highly anticipated “Wicked” movie featuring its two leading castmates, Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda.

However, fans on social media have noticed something odd: the British press — actually just some elements of it — instead of highlighting Erivo — a homegrown talent and the film’s lead — seems to be putting Ariana Grande front and center in their coverage.

The British press is using Ariana Grande to promote the movie “Wicked” and not their hometown star, Cynthia Erivo. (Photo Promotional Picture)

The irony here is almost too on-the-nose. “Wicked” tells the story of Elphaba, who’s shunned and overshadowed by Glinda because of her green skin. Replace green with Black, and the real-world parallels become impossible to ignore.

Erivo’s Elphaba, the emotional heart of the story, is once again being overshadowed — this time by a blond, white co-star on newspaper covers. Fans have called it out as a textbook example of racial bias, turning what should’ve been a celebration of British talent into an uncomfortable reminder of lingering inequities.

Many fans find it painfully ironic that Erivo’s own country appears reluctant to highlight her while championing Grande, who, let’s face it, isn’t even playing the lead.

“Not a single sight of Cynthia Eviro on the cover of these newspaper. She literally plays is the MAIN character Elphaba and it’s so easy to find a pic of them both I hate what white media in Britain do,” one X user tweeted along with a viral video featuring several front pages of The Times, The Daily Telegraph and The Daily Mail. Those three newspapers are all News Corp. outlets, owned by the same conservative-leaning media conglomerate that has subsidiaries such as Fox News in the United States.

One newspaper only highlighted Grande’s appearance at the London premiere but not Erivo, who was also present.

Another person posted, “Cynthia Erivo is THE LEAD she’s also British do you know how racist the British media is to cut THEIR OWN HOMEGROWN LEADING LADY OUT OF THE PICTURES to focus on the White American lady?! SMDH.”

A third comment read, “British press not showing Cynthia erivo on the front cover of the papers… the aggression is not so micro.”

The irony of this disrespect is that Erivo is very proud of her British identity.

A few years back, many tweets resurfaced where she seemed to make dismissive comments about Black Americans and hyping up her own Nigerian and English background. In one 2013 tweet, she was called out for saying she was using “ghetto America” style when writing words from the African American vernacular.

The backlash was swift, with critics questioning her for dissing Black Americans when her biggest roles have been from her playing characters from the United States.

“Well there’s this. Cynthia Ervio wants to play famous black Americans while disrespecting black Americans. That’s my issue,” one person tweeted.

For a story about challenging norms and lifting up the marginalized, the media rollout for “Wicked” is hitting a sour note for some fans.

Many in America have focused not on the story, but on the tiny sizes of both of the stars. People say that both Erivo and Grande look extremely thin, sparking chatter that the two are competing to be smaller than the other.

Another controversy came when the Nigerian-Brit complained about a fan-generated poster that was posted online that seemed to cover her face but strongly featured Grande’s. The original art shows her face prominently.

“This is the wildest, most offensive thing I have seen, equal to that awful AI of us fighting… Our poster is an homage not an imitation, to edit my face & hide my eyes is to erase me. That is just deeply hurtful,” she tweeted.

For her, this was an issue of erasure. Fans believe the very same erasure is taking place in the media in her home nation.

“Cynthia Erivo is a multiple award-winning, triple threat, TALENT on at least two continents,” one fan argued before declaring, “British press is garbage.”

The United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent did a study in 2012 that noted that United Kingdom has an issue with treating their Black people poorly in the press and in real life.

This is evident in how the British media treated former Duchess Meghan Markle, slinging mud at her in various headlines and, in one case, promoting that she was not Black.

While the “Harriet” star is poised to give a stunning performance as the misunderstood Elphaba, the British press’ focus on the popular former Nickelodeon star and pop princess feels like a missed opportunity to celebrate one of their own.

Much like Elphaba herself, Erivo might just have the last word, proving that no matter who’s on the cover, it’s the underdog’s story that counts.

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