🔗 Share this article

Passionate fans of Ariana Grande are calling for that a man who leaped a barrier and seized the celebrity during yesterday's Wicked: For Good debut be detained or deported from Singapore.

A widely shared video shows the person identified as Johnson Wen pushing past camera operators and lunging at Grande while the performers proceeded down a yellow carpet surrounded by supporters.

Co-star Cynthia Erivo quickly wrested the stunned performer away from Mr Wen, who was observed being led away of the event by guards.

Mr Wen shared on Instagram recently that he was "let go after being detained", though legal records revealed that he was scheduled to appear on the following morning. It is not clear if he was charged.

Record of Event Invasions

This is not the first time for Mr Wen, who describes himself as a "Controversial Figure", has disrupted a performance. His Instagram feed contains clips of him disrupting other star-studded functions, including breaching the performance area at the artist's Sydney performance in recently and in a similar way during The Chainsmokers performance in the area last December.

"There needs to be action applied against him as this is clearly a punishable act," stated an Instagram user, in a reply to a video Mr Wen posted of his act.

"This appears to be a habit... why are you not imprisoned?" a different Instagram user wrote.

Fans Show Disapproval Over the Star's Past Trauma

Many supporters blamed Mr Wen for "causing further distress" Grande, who had spoken of experiencing trauma-related anxiety after a devastating incident at the conclusion of her May 2017 concert in Manchester, claiming the lives of 22 people and harming hundreds.

"The star has endured numerous terrifying experiences... including the Manchester tragedy, and you believed breaching security was amusing?" commented another comment on Instagram.

A number of supporters also criticised guards at the premiere for not being adequately prepared; while different individuals requested digital services to remove Mr Wen's content.

Aftermath and Premiere Information

In clips circulating online, Grande seemed surprised when she was grabbed by the intruder. Her cast members Michelle Yeoh and Erivo can be seen reassuring her while Mr Wen was led out by guards.

Grande has not commented on the situation, and the rest of the event proceeded as normal.

Numerous of fans had gathered in a mass of emerald and rose at the Wicked: For Good international debut in a Singapore mall, including several who had queued for as long as a significant duration before it started.

The motion picture, to be released on 21 November, is the second of a dual version of the acclaimed stage musical Wicked, which centers on the unlikely bond between two contrasting sorceresses.

The production itself is a spin-off of the classic story The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Grande, who plays the benevolent sorceress Glinda, was adorned in a light pink sequin dress at the gathering while Erivo, who plays the wicked witch, wore a sleek black dress decorated with roses.

They were alongside co-star Jeff Goldblum.

The first movie, Wicked, was the highest-grossing film of 2024 in the UK, and earned 10 Academy Award nods, earning several for excellent wardrobe and set decoration.