{"id":2175269,"date":"2025-11-24T18:00:22","date_gmt":"2025-11-24T18:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2175269"},"modified":"2025-11-24T18:00:22","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T18:00:22","slug":"puff-piece-for-wicked-star-backfires-in-a-spectacular-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/puff-piece-for-wicked-star-backfires-in-a-spectacular-way\/","title":{"rendered":"Puff Piece For Wicked Star Backfires In A Spectacular Way"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">When <em>Wicked: For Good<\/em> premiered, Variety released a puff piece praising Glinda the Good Witch star Ariana Grande for being one of the only pop stars to ever make the transition from musician to major acting star. However, it\u2019s an odd bit of praise, for Grande was a star of stage and screen long before she picked up a microphone.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Judging from the internet backlash to this proclamation (which follows on the heels of the <em>Wicked<\/em> sequel getting tepid reviews), it\u2019s fair to say that this puff piece has backfired in the most spectacular way.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"mb-4 text-lg font-bold\"><strong>Popular, She\u2019s Gonna Be Popular<\/strong><\/h3>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Variety piece was written by Daniel D\u2019Addario, who declared that \u201cAriana Grande did the near impossible\u201d by making \u201cthe perilous crossover from pop icon to movie star.\u201d The author claims this is a feat that other pop legends like Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, Madonna, and Justin Timberlake have failed to do. This was followed by some hot takes that some of these stars (like Madonna and Timberlake) only have one hit movie to their name, which is a huge contrast to Grande, who has two.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">It\u2019s not hard to see the author really splitting hairs here because <em>Wicked<\/em> was controversially split into two parts so that director Jon M. Chu could stretch the hit Broadway play (which was shorter in its entirety than the first <em>Wicked<\/em> movie!) into a duology designed to dominate the holidays two years in a row. Praising Grande for being in two hit movies begs the question: if <em>Evita<\/em> (which the author declared Madonna\u2019s \u201cone unambiguous movie triumph\u201d) had been arbitrarily split into two parts, would D\u2019Addario be celebrating <strong>her<\/strong> as the first pop icon to star in multiple hit movies?<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"mb-4 text-lg font-bold\"><strong>Wicked: For Bad<\/strong><\/h3>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"900\" height=\"506\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/f2J.5r38gZ52T7EZ0kHMfw--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/giant_freakin_robot_articles_628\/a4e5e30942614d8496301877cd508ba4\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">On X, some users pointed this out, claiming that the success of the second movie isn\u2019t exactly shocking, given that the box office performance of the first film virtually guaranteed the sequel would be a smash hit. Ariana Grande is legitimately great in both, but the Variety puff piece claims that \u201cshe proved the first film was no fluke\u201d with the success of the second film. Not only does this discount the hard work of the director and other members of this ensemble cast, but it gives Grande credit for headlining multiple hit movies that she just happened to film at the same time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Other X users pointed out that earlier pop icons achieved greater success, like Cher winning a Best Actress Oscar for <em>Moonstruck<\/em> and <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.giantfreakinrobot.com\/topic\/lady-gaga\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Lady Gaga;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\">Lady Gaga<\/a> getting nominated for Best Actress for <em>A Star Is Born<\/em> (she ended up winning the Oscar for Best Original Song for the same film). The Academy Awards are arguably the best measure of a movie star\u2019s success, and so far, Grande has earned only a single nomination while earning no trophies. Wouldn\u2019t that, by definition, make both Cher and Lady Gaga pop stars who became movie stars long before Grande sang her way to Oz and back?<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"mb-4 text-lg font-bold\"><strong>She\u2019s Not That Girl<\/strong><\/h3>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"900\" height=\"506\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/iV2D9AkDX8IqBz2uQ.LnPQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/giant_freakin_robot_articles_628\/d45b5447f11d9401bc9199b6c8194adf\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Still more users pointed out something the Variety article only obliquely acknowledged: that Ariana Grande was a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.giantfreakinrobot.com\/topic\/nickelodeon\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Nickelodeon;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\">Nickelodeon<\/a> star of shows like <em>Victorious<\/em> and acted on Broadway <strong>before<\/strong> she became a singer. For that matter, she acted in a ton of major TV shows like <em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.giantfreakinrobot.com\/topic\/scream\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Scream;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\">Scream<\/a> Queens<\/em> and movies like <em>Zoolander 2<\/em> and <em>Don\u2019t Look Up<\/em> (itself a hit movie nominated for four Academy Awards) before starring in <em>Wicked<\/em>. Therefore, it\u2019s bizarre to play up the significance of her going from singer to actor (it was literally the other way around!) and even weirder to act like these two Wicked movies are the only opportunities Grande has had to demonstrate serious acting chops.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">These criticisms represent just a few of the issues that thousands of internet users had with Variety\u2019s puff piece on Ariana Grande. Collectively, they illustrate how much this empty marketing stunt backfired on the publication and cast the singer\/actor in a negative light. Considering that almost every discussion about the press for <em>Wicked: For Good<\/em> has people asking why Grande is looking and acting so weird, it\u2019s clear that Variety may have done more harm than good, giving this troubled star extraordinarily controversial praise at the exact moment she desperately needs some non-controversial press.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When Wicked: For Good premiered, Variety released a puff piece praising Glinda the Good Witch star Ariana Grande for being one of the only pop stars to ever make the transition from musician to major acting star. However, it\u2019s an odd bit of praise, for Grande was a star of stage and screen long before [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2175270,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[24076,24509,31491,418599,418600,371517],"class_list":["post-2175269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-ariana-grande","tag-justin-timberlake","tag-movie-star","tag-praising-grande","tag-the-variety","tag-wicked-movies"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Puff-Piece-For-Wicked-Star-Backfires-In-A-Spectacular-Way.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2175269","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2175269"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2175269\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2175271,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2175269\/revisions\/2175271"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2175270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2175269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2175269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2175269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}