Commentary: The ‘Wicked’ gatecrasher got a jail sentence. Good.

At the "Wicked: For Good" premiere at Resorts World Sentosa, a gatecrasher jumped over the barrier and charged at Ariana Grande.

His name is Johnson Wen, and he’s a serial event crasher who identifies himself as “Troll Most Hated”.

He’s also Australian, not Singaporean.

But that wasn’t immediately obvious.

Something bad...is happening in Singapore

The Nov. 13 incident went internationally viral very quickly.

Initial comments cast doubt and scorn on Singapore and Singaporeans alike, with many questioning how such an incident could happen on our famously safe shores.

Even after Wen's identity was established and people realised he wasn’t a local, it was a matter of national embarrassment.

Fans pointed out that he’d run down the yellow carpet unchecked until co-star Cynthia Erivo and their bodyguards got to him.

It even made it to the international media. BBC and E! News reported on the premiere — but their headlines were about the incursion, not the event’s intended prestige for Singapore.

To make things worst, after the event, Wen went online and boasted that he was "free after being arrested", casting further aspersions on our super-safe rep.

How did such a thing happen?

Reputation at stake

Frankly, Singapore has to work really hard to attract international acts.

Critics say we're boring and have a small market. As an event host, we're often compared to our cheaper, larger, and perhaps more exciting neighbours, like Malaysia and Thailand.

Sure, we have assets: like our modern infrastructure and regional accessibility.

But these aren't unique to us. Singapore's main draw has always been its safety and security.

It's what brings in artistes like Taylor Swift and Coldplay, both of whom chose Singapore as the base for their Southeast Asia tours.

We Singaporeans get to enjoy such events because of the reputation we've painstakingly built. People trust us to organise large-scale events smoothly and safely.

But reputations can be tarnished overnight.

Deportation

On Nov. 14, Wen was arrested and charged in court for public nuisance.

And on Nov. 17, he was handed a nine-day jail sentence.

The prosecution pointed out that not only did he disrupt the event, he bragged about his actions and release online, indicating a "glaring lack of remorse".

His behaviour also undermines Singapore's reputation as a safe country, she added.

"The sufficiently firm sentence [is a] deterrence signal to like-minded individuals that we do not condone such acts in Singapore, and will not condone such disruptions and public nuisance behaviour".

Critics may argue that such a response is too strict, even overkill; that hauling him to court is giving Wen what he wants by offering him more attention.

They may dismiss Wen as a harmless attention-seeker who didn’t technically hurt anyone or cause any real chaos.

But consider this, celebrity status aside: An adult man, in public, charged at a woman and touched her without her consent, causing her shock and discomfort.

This isn’t OK. Especially not in Singapore. And we must make our stance clear.

It's the way you're viewed

As Grande herself put it, in the song "Popular": It’s not about aptitude, it’s the way you’re viewed.

Sure, we can call it a one-off. We Singaporeans know that the city is still safe and secure.

But what does the rest of the world see?

The recent surge of international events in Singapore is something we cannot take for granted. Our success is still in its nascent stages: as Edwin Tong once explained, it is a growth area that we can tap into, a once-latent potential now unlocked.

In terms of numbers alone, Taylor Swift and Coldplay injected S$450 million into our economy.

But just as significant is what this means for our tiny island-state. That we can compete on the world stage, that we Singaporeans get the same access as our peers in bigger, more prominent elsewhere.

In Southeast Asia, Singapore is the venue of choice. It's hard-earned and something we should hold on to or die trying.

So if this is what we have to do to preserve Singapore’s international reputation, I say: Thank goodness.

Top image from Johnson Wen/Instagram and sofiarichard/TikTok