A shocking moment unfolded at the Singapore premiere of Wicked: For Good on Thursday, Nov. 13, when Ariana Grande was confronted by an aggressive fan on the red carpet.
Videos captured from multiple angles show Grande, who stars as Glinda, walking the yellow brick road carpet at Universal Studios Singapore alongside co-stars Michelle Yeoh, Cynthia Erivo, and Jeff Goldblum. Suddenly, a man wearing a white shirt and shorts sprinted toward her and grabbed her, wrapping his arm around her as she tried to pull away.
Erivo, who plays Elphaba, immediately reacted, placing herself between Grande and the man while apparently shouting at him. Security personnel quickly intervened and removed the fan from the scene. Grande appeared visibly shaken, taking deep breaths as Erivo and Yeoh comforted her.
@bellephai13 Someone freaking attacked Ariana on the yellow carpet!!!! 🤬😡 #wickedforgood #wicked #singapore #fyp #foryou ♬ original sound – belle phai
The fan was quickly identified by social media users as Johnson Wen, who is known online as “Pyjama Man.” Wen later posted his own footage of the incident on Instagram, captioning it: “Dear Ariana Grande, Thank you for letting me Jump on the Yellow Carpet with You ❤️.” Wen has a history of crashing celebrity events, previously interrupting performances by Katy Perry in June and The Weeknd in August.
This incident is particularly distressing for Grande, who has openly discussed her ongoing struggles with PTSD following the 2017 Manchester concert bombing, which claimed 22 lives. Speaking to British Vogue in 2018, she said, “It’s hard to talk about because so many people have suffered such severe, tremendous loss … I don’t think I’ll ever know how to talk about it and not cry.”
Grande also shared her long-term battle with anxiety, noting, “I’ve always had anxiety. I’ve never really spoken about it because I thought everyone had it, but after the tour in September 2017, it was the most severe I think it’s ever been.”
The incident serves as a stark reminder of the pressures and risks celebrities face, even at high-profile, well-guarded events.
