Fact Check: Did Taylor Swift really get cast as Dorothy in 'Wicked: For Good'?

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Rumors spiraled this week after a viral image appeared to show Taylor Swift dressed as Dorothy in the upcoming film ‘Wicked: For Good’. Swifties quickly went into meltdown mode, convinced the pop icon had joined the cast. 

But is the photo real, or just fan fiction gone viral? Before official sources could weigh in, the Internet was already buzzing. Now, it's time to separate truth from fiction and find out what’s really going on with this Dorothy drama.

Claim: Taylor Swift plays Dorothy in 'Wicked: For Good'

Coinciding with the release of the new 'Wicked: For Good' trailer, a viral post featured Grammy Award winner Taylor Swift, 35, dressed as Dorothy.

“First look at Dorothy, who will be played by Taylor Swift in WICKED: FOR GOOD,” read the caption from Pob Base.

The image showed Swift sporting Dorothy’s iconic braided pigtails tied with blue ribbons, along with her signature blue checkered dress. In the background, fans could spot the Emerald City and the famous yellow brick road.

The post quickly sent shockwaves through the Swiftie community. One fan said, "OMG, Taylor Swift as Dorothy?! This is HUGE! I'm so excited, I can barely contain myself! That's such a fantastic casting choice."

Another wrote, "I mean why not she can do it."

Some critics also joined in with one questioning, "Who's going to do the singing?" and another said, "Shouldn’t it be like…a young girl."

Fact Check: Taylor Swift dressed as Dorothy is an AI-generated image posted by a parody account

Although the image of Taylor Swift dressed as Dorothy appeared to confirm her casting in 'Wicked: For Good', it actually originated from a parody account with just 10.4k followers that had previously shared the film's trailer.

As reported by the Daily Mail, the image was AI-generated and posted by a parody account named Pob Base, a play on the well-known entertainment news account Pop Base.

The parody account's bio clearly states: "Pob Base is your best source for all parody culture related entertainment, news, award show coverage and chart updates," indicating that it shares humorous or fictional content, not verified news.

However, many users were misled due to the close resemblance between the parody and the real account. Both accounts share similar branding, and the only noticeable difference is the letter "b" at the end of “Pob,” making it easy to confuse the two.

This confusion was further compounded by the fact that the fake image was shared alongside the official trailer for 'Wicked: For Good,' which had just been released the day before. Because the false claim was presented next to real promotional material, many fans, including devoted Swifties, were easily fooled into believing the casting rumor was true.

This article contains remarks made on the internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.