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Man Who Charged at and Grabbed Ariana Grande at Wicked: For Good Premiere Deported, Banned From Singapore

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Ariana Grande hasn't shut the door on 'Wicked 3' ... but Singapore has shut the door on a clout chaser who grabbed her during a "Wicked: For Good" event.


via: EW


Johnson Wen, 26, has been sent back to Australia and "barred from re-entering Singapore" according to reports from multiple outlets, including CBS and BBC News. An influencer who also goes by the moniker "Pyjama Man," Wen sparked outrage at the Nov. 13 Singapore premiere of the Wicked sequel when he jumped over the barricade and rushed the red carpet.


He was subsequently found guilty of being a public nuisance in Singaporean court and sentenced to nine days in prison. He told the judge in mitigation that he would "not do it again."


Footage of the incident saw Wen grab Grande, who was walking hand in hand with fellow cast members Cynthia Erivo, Michelle Yeoh, and Jeff Goldblum. Erivo jumped into action, as did security, who pulled Wen away. The shocking interaction immediately went viral on social media, with one angle revealing that Wen attempted to rush Grande a second time but was caught by security before he could reach the singer.


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Erivo has since opened up about the incident during a sit-down with Today host Savannah Guthrie.


"I wasn't really thinking," she said on last Thursday’s episode of the morning show. "I just wanted to make sure my friend was safe."


She added, "I'm sure he didn't mean us harm, but you never know with those things, and I wanted to make sure that she was okay. That was my first instinct."


Erivo previously referenced the incident during a Q&A with Grande and their costars at a special Screen Actors Guild screening of the movie last Saturday.


"We have come through some shit. We have come through some stuff in our lives, in our daily workings," she said at the event, which Entertainment Weekly attended. "I mean, f---, even this last week. Let's be honest, for f---'s sakes, we've had to really deal with some stuff, and this movie has allowed us to really grow as people, as friends, as sisters, as artists, as actresses.


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Grande could be seen tearing up as Erivo continued, "That is the thing that is special about this piece. And I'll miss being in this group of people this constantly. Because you don't get a group of people this close often on a set. You don't earn family like this often, and we have. F---ing lucky thing to be a part of."


While Grande has not publicly commented on the situation, her fan base was quick to condemn Wen’s actions on social media and accused him of retraumatizing the singer, whose 2017 concert in Manchester, England, was disrupted by a terrorist attack that killed 22 attendees. The Grammy winner has previously opened up about having anxiety and PTSD at large public events in the wake of the bombing.


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