The man who was caught on camera grabbing Ariana Grande at Singapore’s Wicked: For Good premiere has been sentenced to nine days in prison.
Australian citizen Johnson Wen, 26, was seen running up to the star as she was walking hand-in-hand with fellow castmembers Cynthia Erivo, Michelle Yeoh and Jeff Goldblum on the red carpet Thursday.
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As he threw his arms around Grande’s neck, Erivo jumped into action and fought him off, with help from security. The footage went viral on social media and swiftly prompted outrage as a visibly shocked Grande was comforted by her co-stars.
The furor grew as it was revealed Wen has a history of jumping the barriers and storming stars at public events. Wen, who calls himself “Troll Most Hated” on his Instagram account, also took to the stage at concerts by Katy Perry, The Weeknd and The Chainsmokers.
On Monday, BBC News reported that a Singaporean court has sentenced Wen to nine days in prison. The court heard he had attempted to intrude on the premiere in Singapore twice — including an attempt after he ran at Grande. Wen was then pinned to the floor by security. He was arrested the next day and charged with public nuisance, and later pleaded guilty.
Wen told a judge in the Singaporean court that he would “not do it again.” Grande has not publicly commented on the situation.
Fans noted that the event could have been triggering for superstar Grande after a 2017 terrorist attack at one of her concerts in Manchester, England, killed 22 attendees. Earlier this year, Grande spoke to The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast about experiencing psychological fallout from the tragedy.
“I was doing so much therapy, and I was dealing with PTSD and all different kinds of grief and depression and anxiety,” she said. “I was, of course, treating it very seriously, but having music be a part of that remedy was absolutely contributing to saving my life. They were dark times, and the music brought so much levity.”
After the latest incident with Wen, some have accused him of “re-traumatizing” the actress.
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