The man who grabbed Ariana Grande after jumping over a barricade at the Wicked: For Good event in Singapore has been charged with being a public nuisance. And he has a history of being one.
Johnson Wen, 26, of Australia, appeared in district court via video call on Friday, according to the Straits Times, a newspaper in Singapore.
Wen told the court he intends to plead guilty to the charge, which carries a maximum penalty of three months in jail, a $1,500 fine, or both. His next court date is scheduled for Nov. 17.
A video of the incident shows Wen hopping over a barricade and pushing past photographers to reach Grande on the yellow carpet. Grande’s Wicked: For Good costar, Cynthia Erivo, is seen pulling a stunned Grande away from him as security intervened.
The event at Universal Studios Singapore in Sentosa was a part of the international promotional tour for Wicked: For Good, which opens on Nov. 21.
Wen, who refers to himself on Instagram as a “stage invader” and “troll most hated,” posted the footage of the stunt with a caption: “Dear Ariana Grande Thank You for letting me Jump on the Yellow Carpet with You ❤️”
Wen’s Instagram feed includes other videos of him crashing events, including concerts by Katy Perry, the Weeknd and the Chainsmokers. He also ran onto the track during the men’s 100-meter final at the 2024 Paris Olympics and stormed the field during the 2023 Women’s World Cup Final.
"Oh wow so you do this a lot,” one Instagram user commented after Wen’s Wicked: For Good disturbance. “How aren't you in jail?"
Others demanded that Wen be deported.
Grande has not commented about the incident. She has spoken about having post-traumatic stress from the 2017 bomb attack at her concert in Manchester, England, where 22 people were killed.
"After all the trauma Ari has been through, this is beyond disrespectful," another commenter wrote. "Not just to her, but to the cast and to all the fans. It’s literally infuriating. You should be ashamed."
According to Sky News, Wen posted several videos to his Instagram stories ahead of the event, including one in which he pointed to a life-size poster of Grande, saying: “I feel like I’m in a dream, that’s my best friend Ariana Grande.”
“I’m going to meet her, yes, I’ve been dreaming about that,” Wen said.
In a message to NBC News, Wen described himself as a “mega fan” of Grande.
Marissa Bode, one of Grande’s Wicked costars, objected to the idea that Wen was a real fan.
“‘But they're a fan!’ OK. Then they're a fan and a loser,” Bode said in a TikTok video. “This is what I mean when I say social media brings out the worst in people. Oh, did you get your views? Did you get your likes? Guess what you also did? You made somebody feel incredibly unsafe, but just — no remorse. That goes over your head. You're a bad person.”
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