American pop star Ariana Grande is set to step back from the public eye amid growing scrutiny over her appearance.
The announcement comes as the singer also withdrew from her planned West End debut in the Stephen Sondheim musical “Sunday in the Park with George,” where she was supposed to star alongside her “Wicked” castmate Jonathan Bailey.
According to her representative, Grande has decided to take a “much-deserved break from public-facing work and appearances” after she wraps up her “Eternal Sunshine” tour.
West End debut dropped
The musical’s producers confirmed her withdrawal on X, though no reason was specified.
“We know this cannot have been an easy decision and she makes it with our complete understanding and support,” they wrote.
“We wish her nothing but the best.”
Her representative also told People magazine that Grande wants to “step back from visibility,” saying her appearances have “led to endless, ongoing public scrutiny.”
They said that the singer hopes to complete her tour “on a high note, both healthily and happily.” The tour is set to end on September 1.
‘Petal’ fuels discussions, concerns
The “Into You” singer’s decision follows a recent public scrutiny regarding her health and physical appearance.
Concern from fans grew as the singer seems to appear noticeably thinner in her newly released “Petal” music video on Friday.
In the music video, she portrays a performer who endures a barrage of criticism during auditions, with evaluators questioning her abilities, calling her “desperate” and “not good enough.”
The evaluators also made contradictory comments about her appearance, such as telling her that she “should get some work done” while another told her she has “too much work done.”
The character later exacts revenge on the critics using a chainsaw.
Grande has previously spoken out against body-shaming, calling such comments “really dangerous.”
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Jameela Jamil weighs in
Actress Jameela Jamil later weighed in on the discussion, arguing that Grande’s team should have done more to shield the singer from scrutiny instead of fuelling conversation about her appearance.
In a series of posts on social media, she wrote that the singer’s latest imagery risked glamorising extreme thinness to young audiences.
“This poor woman is possibly dying right in front of us,” she wrote.
“This outfit is designed to accentuate the thinness for discourse. Her team are thoroughly irresponsible for not guiding her away from this deeply damaging image for her young fans to see so glamorised.”
Jamil acknowledged that public comments about Grande’s body could harm the singer’s mental health, but argued that staying silent could also normalise unhealthy body standards for young audiences.
“The shrinking pop star situation is something of a trolley problem. If we comment on her body, we could harm her mental health, which would be awful, and nobody wants that.
“If we don’t comment on her body, we run the risk of normalising that image to hundreds of millions of teenage girls, kids and even impressionable adults, consuming her content. Content which is pointedly accentuating her bones and tiny frame with belts and corsets.”
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