Whoopi Goldberg’s controversial take on ‘holding space’ divides Wicked fans

Wicked fans were left divided this week after Whoopi Goldberg's reaction to a popular meme based on the movie went viral.

The adaptation of the Broadway musical hit cinemas last week, and so far, fans have been flocking to watch the movie.

It's been a huge success, too, receiving rave reviews and breaking box office records.

Among all the hype, you may have heard people talking about 'holding space'.

The meme began when leading actors Ariana Grande - who plays Glinda - and Cynthia Erivo - aka Elphaba - were told by a journalist that the movie's 'Defying Gravity' lyrics had seen viewers 'holding space'.

A TikTok of the chat - which has since racked up millions of views online - sees the journalist telling 'bad witch' Cynthia, 37: "I've seen this week people are taking the lyrics of 'Defying Gravity' and really holding space with that and feeling power in that."

Cynthia then reacts with an expression of shock, with Ariana reaching across and taking hold of her fingers for support.

"I didn't know that that was happening," she replies. "That's really powerful. That's what I wanted. I didn't know that was happening."

The movie hit cinemas on 22 November (Universal)

The journalist then clarifies: "I've seen it on a couple of posts - I don't know how widespread - but I am in queer media."

"That's really cool," Cynthia adds.

Still not sure what it means?

Well, the term was first derived by writer Heather Platt in a 2015 blog post, in which she explained that 'holding space' describes the ability to 'walk alongside another person in whatever journey they're on, without judging them, making them feel inadequate, trying to fix them, or trying to impact the outcome'.

Goldberg appeared to have her eyes closed (The View)

Fast-forward to Tuesday's (26 November) episode of The View, and hosts Sunny Hostin and Alyssa Farah Griffin could be seen re-creating Grande and Erivo's finger embrace.

Meanwhile, Joy Behar pointed to Goldberg, who seemed to be nodding off at the table.

“Whoopi took a nap throughout this entire segment," she said.

Meanwhile, Hostin added: “She’s holding space for her self-care!”

Moments later, Goldberg opened her eyes and looked around before smiling and sending the show to an ad break.

People were divided after watching the moment unfold, with one writing: "Don't blame her. Nobody knows what holding space tf means."

While others were furious, with one writing: "Unfollowing."

And another said: "Does anybody even watch the show?"

Tyla has reached out to Goldberg's rep for comment.