Cynthia Erivo has responded to the backlash she received for her upcoming lead role in Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl.

After it was announced earlier this year that the Wicked star would be playing Jesus in Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s musical, some conservatives were quick to criticize her for taking the role as a Black queer woman. However, during a recent interview with Billboard , Erivo couldn’t help but laugh at the negative response.

“Why not?” she said of her casting. “You can’t please everyone. It is legitimately a three-day performance at the Hollywood Bowl where I get to sing my face off. So hopefully they will come and realize, ‘Oh, it’s a musical, the gayest place on Earth.’”

Cynthia Erivo has responded to the backlash she received for her upc

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