Ariana Grande has been criticized for misunderstanding the meaning of “queer” in L. Frank Baum’s original Wizard Of Oz books.
The 31-year-old pop star made the comments while promoting her new film Wicked, a two-part adaptation of the 2003 Broadway musical of the same name.
Based on a novel by Gregory Maguire, Wicked tells the backstory of The Wizard Of Oz’s main antagonist, the Wicked Witch Of The West.
Cynthia Erivo plays the main character in the film, with Ariana as her best friend Galinda, who later becomes Glinda The Good Witch in The Wizard Of Oz.
While doing publicity for her new film, Ariana controversially claimed that Glinda was “maybe a little closeted” and quoted “the L. Frank Baum books, where literally the most used word in the books is ‘queer.’ ‘
She was roundly criticized on social media, where observers pointed out that in the first two decades of the twentieth century, when the books were published, the word “queer” meant “strange” and did not refer to someone’s sexual orientation.
Ariana Grande has been criticized for misunderstanding the meaning of ‘queer’ in L. Frank Baum’s original The Wizard Of Oz books
‘Ignorance is so sad. Even sadder when you wear it as a badge of honor,” one X user sighed, and another wrote, “There was a time when actors were classically trained. Today’s actors only need to know a few cultural Marxist slogans.’
One fan complained, “I wish they would stop interviewing celebrities; they just disappoint with the limited knowledge they have.’
‘Ariana Grande is one of those women who you know isn’t dishonest. She’s just so stupid,” one X user claimed.
‘I have been reading Baum all my life and know very well what it is about. No human chicken wing is going to change that,” another fumed.
“F**s were cigarettes,” one viewer on
“Wait until people find out about the ‘Gay Nineties’ in the 1800s,” another joked, while a third said, “Every home needs a Webster’s 1828 Dictionary.”
“Don’t let them read Lord of the Rings,” one observer dryly noted, referring to the close friendship between the book’s male characters Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee, which some fans joke has homosexual connotations.
L. Frank Baum published his original children’s book The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz in 1900, which introduced readers to such iconic characters as Glinda, the Wicked Witch of the West, Dorothy Gale, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion.
The 31-year-old pop star made the comments while promoting her new film Wicked, in which she stars with Cynthia Erivo.
Wicked: Part One hit theaters last week on November 22, and Wicked: Part Two is scheduled for release on November 21, 2025
She was roundly criticized on social media, where observers pointed out that in the first two decades of the 20th century, when the books were published, the word “queer” meant “queer.”
Upon publication, the first novel proved such a resounding success that the author wrote thirteen full-length sequels before his death in 1919.
In 1995, Gregory Maguire published his revisionist novel Wicked, in which he re-imagined the backstory of the Wicked Witch Of The West – a green girl named Elphaba who studies with Galinda at university.
Despite their initial differences. Elphaba and Galinda become best friends, but are torn apart by the deteriorating political situation in Oz.
However, while recently plugging her new movie, Ariana suggested that Galinda’s emotional attachment to Elphaba might be a little more than platonic.
“Glinda might be a little closeted. You never know! Give it some time,” she teased in an interview with Gay times.
She described Oz as a “celebration of uniqueness,” saying that “everyone is just so beautifully strange and that goes all the way back to L. Frank Baum’s books, where literally the most overused word in the books is ‘weird.”‘
Ariana added that “every day in the Emerald City [the capital of the fictional Land Of Oz] is a Pride parade… just like the chickens, those chickens are gay.”
Furious fans trolled her online, accusing her of ‘queerbaiting’, but she found herself well defended elsewhere.
L. Frank Baum published his original children’s book The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz in 1900, introducing readers to iconic characters like Glinda
The first novel proved such a great success upon publication that the author wrote thirteen full-length sequels before his death in 1919; he is depicted around 1910
L. Frank Baum’s original novel was adapted into the iconic 1939 film The Wizard Of Oz, starring Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale
Kristin Chenoweth, who played Galinda in the 2003 Broadway musical of Wicked, sided with Ariana amid the furor.
When E! News ran a headline about Ariana’s comments his Instagram pageKristin jumped into the comments and wrote, “That’s what I thought too at the time…”
L. Frank Baum’s original novel was adapted into the iconic 1939 film The Wizard Of Oz starring Judy Garland, and then into the all-black 1975 Broadway musical The Wiz, which later became a film starring Michael Jackson and Diana Ross in the leading role.
One of the reasons why the first Pride flag was a rainbow is that Judy, a well-known gay icon, sang the song Over The Rainbow in her film The Wizard Of Oz.
Wicked: Part One hit theaters last week on November 22, and Wicked: Part Two is scheduled for release on November 21, 2025.