A viral conspiracy theory circulating on social media has seen fans accuse Hailey Bieber of “copying” Selena Gomez amid rumours of a feud between the pair.
Gomez and Bieber have been subjected to feud rumours since the Rhode Skin founder married Justin Bieber in 2018, as the pop star famously dated Gomez on and off throughout the 2010s.
However, Bieber and Gomez have both attempted to squash the reports of a feud, with the model previously telling Alex Cooper on her Call Her Daddy podcast that it’s “all respect, it’s all love” between her and her husband’s ex.
The renewed feud speculation, which also involves Kylie Jenner, began last week, when social media users suggested the Kylie Cosmetics founder and Bieber had purposely mocked Gomez after she’d posted an Instagram Story about accidentally over-laminating her eyebrows.
Although Jenner denied she and Bieber were making a dig at Gomez, the interest in the drama has continued, with fans now bringing up past instances where they claim Bieber has “copied” Gomez.
In one TikTok, posted by an individual with the username @protectselgomez, they shared clips of alleged similarities between Gomez’s 2020 cooking show Selena + Chef and Bieber’s 2022 “What’s In My Kitchen?” YouTube series.
“Did Hailey Bieber really think no one would notice?” the TikToker captioned the video, which included comparisons such as Gomez and Bieber’s grandmothers both guest-starring on the respective shows and similarities between their introductions.
“This is my real home, everything that we’re doing is at home, this is my amazing kitchen, which is the set,” Gomez told viewers as she showed them around her kitchen.
The TikTok then transitioned to a clip of Bieber also introducing fans into her kitchen, with the model telling viewers: “Yes, we actually are in my real kitchen, in my real house. This is not a set. This is where I really live.
According to the TikToker, even the camera angles used by Gomez, and then later Bieber, are similar. “This is so scary,” @protectselgomez wrote in the caption of the video.
The video has since been viewed more than five million times on TikTok, where Gomez’s fans have weighed in on the alleged similarities.
“I thought y’all were exaggerating at first but this is scary,” one person wrote, while another said: “Nah, this isn’t a coincidence.
However, others have defended Bieber on the basis that both women were likely following a script, and that to suggest the model is “copying” Gomez is a “stretch”.
“People forget these girls have directors and scripts for these videos. They follow the ‘make it look natural’ script, but it’s still written,” one person alleged, while someone else commented: “What am I missing? This looks exactly like every cooking show and/or TV talk show.”
“This is a stretch,” another person claimed.
But, in addition to comparing Gomez and Bieber’s cooking shows, fans have also claimed to have found similarities in interview responses given by the two celebrities.
In one viral TikTok, uploaded by @hai.lie.bald, it showed footage of two separate interviews with Gomez, in which she’d revealed her wish that people could “know” her “heart”.
“Somebody asked me a while ago, what’s the one thing you wish people knew about you and I said ‘I wanted it to be my heart,’” Gomez said in one of the clips.
The TikTok then transitioned to an interview with Bieber, in which the model had opened up about the idea of people not really “knowing” her. “They didn’t know who I was, they didn’t know Hailey for Hailey. And I just always had this constant battle where I was saying, ‘I wish people just knew my heart.’”
The video also included a comparison between comments Gomez and Bieber have made about their self-image, with the “Same Old Love” singer opening about coming to the realisation that she doesn’t “have to be that 19 year old body shape anymore, because I’m not”.
Bieber expressed a similar sentiment during a podcast interview, during which she’d said: “I’m not 19 anymore, I’m 24 now, I feel like my body has changed …”
Fans have also accused Bieber of “copying” Gomez’s tattoo, as the singer has a small lowercase “G” inked behind her ear, while a resurfaced video showed Bieber getting a similar “G” tattoo behind her ear. Gomez previously told Refinery29 the tattoo is a tribute to her younger half-sister Gracie, while Bieber’s tattoo is reportedly a tribute to her pastor’s daughter, Georgia, who was diagnosed with lissencephaly, an incurable brain disorder. The model’s husband also has a “G” tattoo for the same reason.
As of 2 March, the hashtag #HaileyCopySelena has been viewed more than 66.4 million times on TikTok.
Aside from the alleged similarities, fans have also resurfaced past tweets by Bieber, in which she’d praised her now-husband’s relationship with Gomez.
“I don’t care what anyone says but Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez together is the definition of a teenage dream!” Bieber tweeted in September 2011, according to screenshots captured by Page Six.
In another tweet, posted by Bieber in May 2011, she wrote that she was “for sure 100 per cent team #Jelena,” referring to the nickname for Gomez and her ex.
As of now, neither Gomez nor Bieber have addressed the conspiracy theory, however, the Rare Beauty founder, who recently became the most-followed woman on Instagram, revealed that she would be taking a break from social media amid the feud rumours.
“I’m gonna be taking a second from social media cause this is a little silly and I’m 30. I’m too old for this,” Gomez explained in a TikTok. “But I love you guys so much and I will see you guys sooner than later. I’m just going to have to take a break from everything.”
The singer then deactivated her TikTok account, before reactivating it just hours later.
The Independent has contacted representatives for Gomez and Bieber for comment.
