As Wicked The mania grows, a new fandom emerges and that is not always a source of positivity. With the Wicked True to Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) and Glinda (Ariana Grande), it’s more fun and harmless to poke fun at the conflicts within the film as long as it focuses on the character and not the real-life actor.
Erivo and Grande’s co-star Marissa Bode has so far taken the villainization of her character, the future Wicked Witch of the East and Governor Thropp’s ascendant, Nessarose, in stride. Her role as Elphaba’s sister is pivotal to the witches’ destiny; It is her shiny shoes that become the center of the drama as we move deeper. evil part Twowhich will feature a girl named Dorothy Gale if the film follows the beats of L. Frank Baum. wizard of oz source material. We’ve talked about how Nessa is a villain to watch out for thanks to Bode’s incredible performance, but some people are taking their hatred for the character too far.
In a TikTok reported by DeadlineThe actress shared her recent brushes with harassment focused on her disability; Like his character, Bode uses a wheelchair. “It’s absolutely okay to not like a fictional character,” Bode said. “I’m going to admit my bias in the way that I have a lot of different feelings toward Nessa than many of you, and that’s totally okay. I think Nessa is complex, but that’s the beauty of art. Wicked and these characters and the movie wouldn’t be what they were if there weren’t different opinions about the characters and who is really evil or not. And not liking Nessa herself is fine. Since she’s fictional, that’s totally fine.”
He went on to say that “disability is not fictional” and described the attacks on the character as “aggressive” and “deeply uncomfortable” when they originate from Nessa’s disability.
“At the end of the day, I, Marissa, am the person who is still disabled and in a wheelchair. So, it’s just low-hanging fruit that many of you feel comfortable taking,” Bode said. “This is way beyond me, Marissa, just needing to ignore comments on the internet. These comments do not exist in a vacuum. The aggressive comments about wanting to cause harm and get Nessa out of her wheelchair, or that she deserves her disability, are two very rude and harmful comments that real disabled people, including me, have heard before.”
Wicked It’s already in theaters; Evil second part November 2025 arrives.
Want more io9 news? See when to expect the latest releases from Marvel, Star Wars and Star Trek, what’s next for the DC Universe in film and television, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.