Selena Gomez's latest effort to promote her brand, Rare Beauty, went viral for all the wrong reasons.
On Wednesday, April 1, the singer participated in a Rare Beauty X Sephora event where she was styled by makeup artist Hung Vanngo, who was also responsible for her Oscars 2025 look.
Gomez was joined at the event by several influencers and a popular New York esthetician, Natalie Violette, with whom she clicked a picture that went viral, with netizens focusing on her intense expression.
Highlights
- Selena Gomez recently went viral for a picture she took with an esthetician, with netizens noting that her expression looked “edited” and “robotic.“
- Critics also commented on her style, speculating whether she was wearing a structureless dress to hide pregnancy.
- Gomez received some good news in the form of her directorial debut being confirmed through a franchise she has long been associated with.
“Why are her eyes like that?” one asked, while another confidently noted, “She had work done to her face.”
Selena Gomez was subjected to social media ridicule this week, with her facial expression taking center stage
Image credits: selenagomez/Instagram
Both Gomez and Violette were clicked from the waist up and were seen rocking matching black outfits.
Their makeups were nearly identical as well, with both flaunting rosy cheeks, full eyebrows, and neutral lips.
The immaculate profiles of the ladies, however, failed to draw as much attention as Gomez’s allegedly “unnatural glance” and “fake smile.”
Image credits: selenagomez/Instagram
“She looks so AI here,” one said, while another added, “I’m shook, she’s acting so different… like a robot.”
“This picture is so edited,” a third remarked.
“Something is off here,” the next voice agreed.
Image credits: WorldwideSelG/X
Other comments under the picture took on a more humorous tone.
“Was the influencer stepping on her toe?” one asked.
“That smile looks like she just heard the craziest gossip,” a second added.
Image credits: WorldwideSelG/X
“Selena, blink twice if you need help,” a separate user jested.
“Girl, breathe, it’s okay,” another advised.
At the event, Gomez teased the launch of a new Rare Beauty product.
More unflattering comments overshadowed the release of the brand-new Rare Beauty product
The businesswoman opted for a pink mini dress for the reveal of the True To Myself Natural Matte Rare Beauty foundations at an event hosted at The West Hollywood Edition hotel in Los Angeles on Thursday, April 2.
The coverage cream is set to be sold at $38 and comes in 48 different shades.
It is said to be both cruelty-free and paraben-free. It is also vegan.
Not caring much about Rare Beauty’s evolution, netizens debated Gomez’s eligibility to sell makeup, accusing her of using Botox and fillers to modify her appearance.
Image credits: RougeLady1977
Image credits: Naijagist02
“Did you watch any videos of her speaking at the event? She has frozen half her face,” one wrote.
“She needs to stop those injections,” another said.
“Looking a mess,” a following user opined.
Criticism was also directed at her dress, with many saying “it looked like a plastic bin bag,” as it “lacked structure” and had extra material poking out from under the hem.
Image credits: selenagomez/Instagram
The dress’s shape gave rise to pregnancy speculations, with viewers theorizing that the singer is avoiding fitted clothes to hide a baby bump.
Gomez’s fans, however, reminded commentators that she cannot “carry a child” because of her health issues, namely lupus, a chronic disease where a person’s immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s own tissues and organs.
On the showbiz front, Gomez has been confirmed to make her directorial debut through Wizards Beyond Waverly Place
Image credits: Glenn Francis
Disney’s Wizards Beyond Waverly Place, the sequel to Selena Gomez’s Wizards of Waverly Place, will conclude this summer with a four-part third season.
Gomez will direct the premiere episode of the installment and reprise her role as Alex Russo in select episodes.
Image credits: tshegofatsomoon
Image credits: intuitivadomina
Gomez expressed her pride in the franchise in a statement at the Los Angeles premiere of the sequel in 2024.
“This is what gave me everything that I have today, and I’ll never forget that this is where I started,” the actress said.
Image credits: hungvanngo/Instagram
“It’s the best feeling in the whole world to be able to bring this back for you and to all the people who have never seen it before,” she added.
The finale is set to enter production next week, with cast members David Henrie, Janice LeAnn Brown, Alkaio Thiele, Max Matenko, Taylor Cora, and Mimi Gianopulos all returning.
"Why does she look like she just realized something?" a netizen said about Gomez's viral picture
Image credits: Promise_4k
Image credits: aswiftiejournal
Image credits: alexfvrrr
Image credits: BizzleSwag31
Image credits: aahznx
Image credits: Bigg_JoshhBack
Image credits: _babycryb
Image credits: Suinotgeneris
Image credits: xmilyvee
Image credits: searchails
Image credits: 444moraa_
Image credits: siamakib_0
Image credits: jackyalvv
Image credits: lildark_shit
Image credits: lone1yastronaut
Image credits: ErinClovexxx
Image credits: whogoncheckm3
Image credits: forevergold3n
Image credits: aechichan
Image credits: Khumology
Image credits: blublossombloom
Image credits: gothkuro
Image credits: forthehails