Broadway's original Glinda, Kristin Chenoweth, is defending "Wicked" from a boycott sparked by a conservative group
The group, One Million Moms, released a statement warning parents and urging them not to take their children to Jon M. Chu’s movie musical because it is supposedly “pushing the LGBTQ agenda on families, particularly children.”
The statement adds, "Of course, the musical contains a tremendous amount of witchcraft and sorcery, and that content prompts most parents to avoid taking their children to see 'Wicked.' But the film also shows not-so-discrete [sic] crossdressing [sic] and men crushing on men, which parents may not expect."
Under an Instagram post about the boycott, Chenoweth commented, "Everyone knows the ‘one million Moms’ are a mere few hundred. Maybe. iI’s called entertainment. Artistry. I am a Christian woman [who] originated the role of Glinda and all the silliness that these women spew out of hate. No no no. I can’t help it : I try to love 'em anyways. For they don’t get it. For anyone who wants to see girl power, then go so 'WICKED.' Onstage or in a movie theater."
In Chu's musical version of the movie, Ariana Grande has taken up the Glinda mantle alongside Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba as they play young adult enemies to BFFs at Shiz University. The box office hit has even led to fans shipping the characters romantically together.
Erivo told the Gay Times, "I think [Elphaba] loves Glinda, I think she loves love. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with celebrating the deep connection the both of them have,” Erivo said. “They do have a real relationship. It is true love, which is probably why people are shipping it. What they build with each other is an unbreakable bond and love.”
