Three nights ago, I told myself to watch the new film Now You See Me and ended up watching the green-skinned villain in the movie Wicked for Good since I was with my daughter. What made Wicked For Good for emails is its use of the said ‘bad guy’ in the film. Even if you don’t like this singing genre, the movie shows a masterclass in contrarian psychology that your supplement brand can steal.

Quick story about what happened when I watched Wicked For Good three nights ago. I was supposedly going to watch Now You See Me 2025 with my wife as an anniversary gift, but since my daughter came with us so we decided to watch Wicked for Good instead.

At first glance, I know the story would be ‘bad girl who is actually good tries to save everyone.’ But two hours later, I walked out with something more powerful for supplement brands to implement.

What you see in this movie is actually similar to Disney's $758 million Maleficent psychology formula disguised as a Broadway adaptation. While their traditional "pure hero" Snow White remake crashed and burned at $206 million, audiences are literally paying billions to defend misunderstood villains.

The pattern is crystal clear: we don't want perfect heroes anymore. We want rebels fighting corrupt systems, outcasts standing up to fake authority, truth-tellers everyone else calls crazy. Wicked For Good doesn't just tell you Elphaba is misunderstood - it makes you feel like the misunderstood outsider fighting alongside her.

Wicked For Good dominated with $114 million domestic opening weekend, but here's what's really telling about human psychology:

Viewership Psychology: 73% of audiences rated Elphaba as their favorite character over Glinda (the "good" one). Social media mentions for "Team Elphaba" outpaced "Team Glinda" 4:1.

Cultural Impact: TikTok exploded with 2.3 billion views of #WickedMovie content, with 68% focusing on villain redemption themes. The phrase "Actually, she was right" became viral shorthand.

Fan Behavior: Audiences aren't just watching - they're defending Elphaba in comment sections, creating fan theories about why she's the real hero, and buying "Defying Gravity" merchandise. They've psychologically aligned themselves with the supposed villain.

What Makes This Addictive:

Your brain is wired to root for underdogs, but there's something even more powerful at play here - the "misunderstood genius" archetype triggers your own feelings of being overlooked or underestimated.

Here's What's Really Happening in Your Brain:

When you watch Elphaba get labeled as "wicked" for standing up against corruption, your brain releases the same neurochemicals as when YOU feel misunderstood. Mirror neurons fire, creating instant emotional connection. But your brain also releases dopamine from the "forbidden fruit" effect. You're not supposed to root for the villain, but you do anyway. That cognitive dissonance creates an addiction loop.

The contrarian position becomes your secret rebellion. Supporting Elphaba feels like supporting your own authentic self against societal expectations.

The Contrarian Brand Position for Supplements:

Supplement-Specific Contrarian Hooks:

Just like Wicked For Good uses Elphaba's villain status to create deeper emotional investment, your next Klaviyo sequence should position your supplement brand as the misunderstood outsider fighting for customer health against industry corruption.

This week, create a "Villain's Manifesto" email series. Start with why you're the "bad guy" in your industry - maybe you refuse to use artificial flavors everyone else uses, or you call out bogus claims others make. End each email with your contrarian stance, making customers feel like insiders for choosing the "villain" brand that actually cares about results over profits.

Watch your engagement transform the same way Wicked transforms casual moviegoers into passionate Elphaba defenders.

Streaming Platforms:

Study Tips: Focus on the moment where the Witch accepted her position, and watch how they build Elphaba's transformation from victim to empowered villain

Research Angle: Pay attention to how your emotions shift from sympathy to admiration to fierce loyalty. Notice when you stop seeing her as the villain and start seeing everyone else as the problem.

Which movie or series has completely consumed your marketing brain lately?

Reply with your latest obsession and I'll break down the psychology behind why it works so well in email campaigns.

Until next week, keep defying gravity in your email marketing,

Geb Vence

P.S. The Research Backs This Up:

Recent research from Marketing Dive found that personalized subject lines increase open rates by 50%, while studies show that emails with urgency and exclusivity in subject lines achieve 22% higher open rates. The contrarian "villain brand" psychology taps into both personalization (making customers feel like insiders) and exclusivity (joining the rebellion against mainstream brands) - a powerful combination supplement brands looking to improve their email marketing.

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