Australian Man Charged After Grabbing Ariana Grande at Premiere in Singapore

Fri Nov 14 2025 21:04:56 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

A 26-year-old man faces charges of public nuisance for a shocking incident involving Ariana Grande at the 'Wicked: For Good' premiere. The event has sparked outrage and raised concerns over security measures.

Johnson Wen, who jumped over a barricade to grab Ariana Grande at the 'Wicked: For Good' premiere in Singapore, has been charged with public nuisance. Videos of the incident have gone viral, with many criticizing Wen's actions and calling for stricter security. The actress, who has a history of trauma from previous events, was visibly shaken, while Wen has stated intentions to plead guilty to the charges against him.

A man who jumped over a barricade and grabbed actress Ariana Grande at a Wicked: For Good premiere in Singapore has been charged with being a public nuisance.

A now viral video shows the Australian man, Johnson Wen, pushing past photographers and charging at Grande while the cast made its way down a yellow carpet surrounded by fans. Co-star Cynthia Erivo could be seen wrestling the stunned actress away from Mr. Wen.

The 26-year-old had posted on Instagram late on Thursday that he was free after being arrested. However, on Friday afternoon, he was charged with being a public nuisance by a Singapore court. The incident caused massive outrage in the city state.

Local media reports say Mr. Wen, who was unrepresented, intends to plead guilty. This is not the first time Mr. Wen, who describes himself as a Troll Most Hated, has invaded a concert or event. His Instagram feed includes clips of him disrupting other celebrity events, including jumping on stage at Katy Perry's Sydney concert in June this year. He did the same at a concert by The Chainsmokers last December.

If found guilty, he may be fined up to S$2000 ($1540; £1170). Fans had earlier called for him to be arrested and deported. There needs to be action [taken] against him as this is clearly a criminal offence, wrote an Instagram user. Oh wow so you do this a lot... how aren't you in jail? another user commented.

Several accused Mr. Wen of re-traumatising Grande, who has spoken of experiencing PTSD following a suicide bombing at her May 2017 concert in Manchester. Ariana has been through so many scary things... and at her Manchester concert and you thought it would be fun to jump the barricade? commented another user.

Some fans criticized security officers at the event for not being vigilant enough and called for social media platforms to ban Mr. Wen's videos. In clips circulating online, Grande appeared shocked when she was grabbed by the intruder. Her co-stars Michelle Yeoh and Erivo were seen comforting her while Mr. Wen was escorted away by security.

Grande has not commented on the incident, and the rest of the event proceeded as planned. The BBC reached out to Singapore's police and immigration authority for comment.

Hundreds of fans had gathered in a sea of green and pink at the Wicked: For Good Asia-Pacific premiere in a Singapore mall, some having queued for as long as eight hours. The movie, to be released on 21 November, is the second of a two-part adaptation of the popular Broadway musical Wicked, which centres on the unlikely friendship between two very different witches.

Grande, who plays the good witch Glinda, wore a champagne pink sequin dress at the premiere, while Erivo, portraying the wicked witch, donned a black tube gown embroidered with roses. They were joined by co-star Jeff Goldblum, who plays the wizard.

The first movie, Wicked, was the highest-grossing movie of 2024 in the UK, scoring 10 Oscar nominations and winning two awards for best costume and production design.