
Originally released in 1970, āBeinā Green,ā written by Joe Raposo and performed by Jim Henson, issued a heartfelt warning to anyone who dare follow in Kermit the Frogās webbed footsteps: āItās not that easy beinā greenā¦.ā
So color me outside the lines and not one bit surprised that English actor and singer Cynthia Erivo is facing pre-dick-table backlash and criticism from Wicked stans who decided to āupdateā the upcoming filmās photorealistic posterā¦to look more like the musicalās original illustrated one.



Is this much ado about nothing? I personally donāt think so.
Not only is the audience not always rightā¦none of them are green.
When I first heard about Erivo being cast as Elphaba, I was excitedā¦and nervous.
(On the other hand, when I first heard about Ariana Grande being cast as Glinda, I was annoyedā¦and unimpressed. Ms. Grande and her mess are not my cup of tea.)
I first saw Ms. Erivo in the 2018 thriller Bad Times at the El Royale.
As far as I knew, she was a newcomer. Little did I know sheād already won a Tony for her performance in the revival of The Color Purple on Broadway. (I know⦠bad gay!)
In the film, she sang āCanāt Hurry Loveā a capella. For me, it was love at first sight.
So why was I excited and nervous about her casting?
Well, to be blunt, a large contingent of Wickedās fanbase has been known to get upset whenever Black actors have played Elphaba in the musicalās many productions.
Forgetting the fact the character is green, stans have stood by their stance that the role was originally played by a āwhiteā woman: Idina Menzel. Not that it matters, but most stans probably donāt realize Menzel is also Jewish (of Russian descent). Or realize the character as written is a commentary on being anything but white.
So while stans consider themselves being āpurists,ā in my book, theyāre being racists. Most stans insist they arenāt. But by trying to erase and obscure Erivoās eyes and face with a more āfamiliarā image, theyāre erasing her humanity in the process. And we all know about ladies who doth protest too much, right? Right.
To some, it may be 'just a poster,ā but itās about much more than that.
Black actors rarely get the opportunity to headline a major studio movie, especially the film adaptation of one of the most beloved (and successful) musicals in history.
As a gay white guy, even I know how much representation does matter. So when folks attempt to criticize or diminish these accomplishments, I feel they are reinforcing the barriers that anyone who colors outside the lines have been fighting to break down for years. Across gender, race, sexualityā¦and more.
So, my heart goes out to Cynthia Erivo. Sheās stepping into a role that already comes with monumental pressureāand now, sheās facing a fandom that wants to rewrite the narrative before anyone in the general public has even seen the film.
But, if anyone can rise above the noise and fly (and sing) higher than the hate and noise, itās CYNTHIA ERIVOā¦IN WICKED.
Itās not that easy bein' green, but neither is defying gravity.
Thanks for reading!
Clint
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Whenever I run into something like this my first thought is nearly always, "Must be nice to have a life that gives you enough discretionary time that you can make an existential crisis out if this. I've never had that experience."
I don't know anything about the story at all, but it just seems odd that anyone even cares about the skin color of whoever plays characters in an imaginary world. I'm really falling to see how it matters.
I'll be honest. I completely failed to follow your description of the other side's argument, so maybe my opinion is too uninformed to be of value.
I'm a Wicked fan. Matter of fact, I'm seeng it on Broadway for the 6th time in mid-November with my hubby and friends. It's so disappointing --to say the least-- to hear that people who claim to be fans fail to see the whole point of this marvelous story. Same old, I guess: ignorance reigns supreme.