Fans of the Broadway star Kristin Chenoweth were surprised on to see her publicly grieve over the right-wing provocateur Charlie Kirk after he was shot and killed in Utah on Wednesday.
The 57-year-old actress -- who originated the role of Glinda on stage in Wicked -- mourned Kirk's death on Wednesday in an Instagram comment on the final video he posted before he was shot in the neck by a gunman located on the roof of a nearby building at Utah Valley University.
The shooter is still at large as FBI Director Kash Patel traveled to Utah on Thursday amid criticism for the bureau's inability to quickly apprehend the shooter and for his decision to fire the 'legendary' special agent in Utah who would have led the manhunt just a month earlier.
Many of Chenoweth's fans were vocally opposed to Kirk due to his anti-abortion, anti-immigrant, anti-transgender and pro-Second Amendment views.
Their fury at the actress led several users on X and Instagram to claim that Chenoweth is a Republican, though she supported Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election and has previously mocked President Donald Trump as part of her stage shows.
The Daily Mail has contacted Chenoweth's representative for comment but has not yet received a response.
'I'm. So. Upset. Didn't always agree but appreciated some perspectives,' Chenoweth commented on a video of Kirk espousing an anti-abortion view while debating a college student who supported legalized abortion.
'What a heartbreak. His young family,' the stage and screen star continued. 'I know where he is now. Heaven. But still 💔.'
Chenoweth continued to mourn Kirk in her Instagram Stories, where she wrote, 'Such a sad, senseless, and disgusting act! Wow....prayers for the Kirk family and prayers for our nation.'
She followed her post up be sharing a post originating from X that called Kirk's murder 'horrifying and unacceptable.'
'You don't have to agree with a man to reject violence against him. We cannot normalize bullets over beliefs,' wrote the liberal political analyst Brian Allen.
'America is not a war zone for political speech. If it becomes one, no one will be safe; left, right, or center.'
On X, fans lambasted Chenoweth, with some claiming that she is a Republican due to her tributes to Kirk, though her defenses of the LGBTQ community are a stark contrast with the late firebrand's views.
'How many times does it need to be said that Kristen Chenoworth is a Republican woman?!?!?!?!?,' one user claimed in all caps.
Several fans accused Chenoweth of being a Republican, despite the fact that she has publicly mocked President Donald Trump in her stage shows.
Chenoweth mourned Kirk in the comments of the final video he posted on Instagram before his murder, in which he debated a college student supporting legalized abortion by promoting his own anti-abortion views.
Chenoweth said she 'Didn't always agree but appreciated some perspectives' from Kirk without spelling out which of his views she agreed with. She shared her 'heartbreak' for Kirk's 'young family' and declared that he was in 'Heaven'
Chenoweth continued to mourn Kirk in her Instagram Stories, where she called his murder 'a sad, senseless, and disgusting act'
She followed her post up be sharing a post originating from X that called Kirk's murder 'horrifying and unacceptable'
Several users on X claimed that Chenoweth was a Republican without evidence
'She voted for Trump, she is a raging racist who mistreats people of colour she works with, and has been using the LGBTQ community to line her pockets while actively working against us.'
The comment despite Chenoweth filming a pro-Kamala Harris song on social media in October of 2024.
She also made her support clear for the Democratic nominee in 2016, when she reunited with her Wicked costar Idina Menzel to record a pro-Hillary Clinton song.
Chenoweth further cemented her Democratic bona fides in 2020 by publicly supporting former President Joe Biden.
'Kristin Chenoweth has shown us who she is too many times to even be a tiny bit surprised by this,' another person claimed.
Many fans wished that the television star would have simply refrained from commenting on Kirk's death.
'kristin chenoweth alwaaaays on the scene of the crime these days 😠she needs to log OFF,' one poster advised.
One post featured a photo of a student with veins bulging on his forehead and neck,' and they captioned it, 'Kristin Chenoweth trying not to say some stupid bs in instagram comments.'
The claims conflicted with Chenoweth's support of Democratic presidential nominees Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, as well as her pro-LGBTQ statements;
Many posters urged Chenoweth to refrain from posting about Kirk's death
Others suggested that she had been eclipsed by other actresses who have portrayed Wicked's Glinda, including Megan Hilty and Ariana Grande, due to her posts grieving Kirk's death
One poster saluted Wicked film star Melissa Bode for a video in which she defended not mourning Kirk due to his publicly stated views and actions and compared Chenoweth unfavorably to her
Although the actress doesn't appear to have explicitly called herself a Republican in the past, she has stated that she is a Christian;
Another user said that the actress was 'always refusing to stay quiet when she absolutely needs to.'
Other critical fans took another approach and suggested that Chenoweth’s fame for originating the role of Glinda in Wicked had been eclipsed by other subsequent stars who took on the role due to her public statements.
In response to a post claim that the original film soundtrack version of the Wicked tune No One Mourns The Wicked, which was sung by Ariana Grande in the role that Chenoweth originated, had seen a 50 percent 'surge in streams on Spotify' on Wednesday.
'Notice how no one is streaming kristin chenoweth,' one user claimed,re ferring to the original Broadway cast recording that features Chenoweth singing the same song.
'Um anyway... This is why Megan Hilty will always be THEEEE GLINDA THE GOOD,' another poster wrote while sharing Chenoweth’s comment,re ferring to the stage and TV star who later played Glinda.
Another poster wrote that they 'hope ariana grande wins the oscar' for portraying Glinda in the upcoming second Wicked film,because 'she's more highly recognized for the role of glinda than kristin chenoweth is.'
One poster saluted Wicked film star Melissa Bode for a video in which she defended not mourning Kirk due to his publicly stated views and actions and compared Chenoweth unfavorably to her.
Although the actress doesn't appear to have explicitly called herself a Republican in the past, she has stated that she is a Christian.