Selena Gomez Says She Will 'Never' Be a Meme Again: 'I'd Rather Sit Still Than Be Dragged'

Selena Gomez is done with being a meme.

The singer and actress, 31, said she will “never” be a viral moment again in a post on her Instagram Story Tuesday.

“I will never be a meme again,” wrote the Only Murders in the Building star following her appearance at the 2023 MTV VMAs earlier in the night. “I’d rather sit still than be dragged for being myself. Much love.”

Gomez’s post comes after she became the subject of a meme last month thanks to a photo of her fully wrapped up in a cozy blanket while looking into the distance deep in thought. 

Still, the “Single Soon” singer’s reactions during the award show at New Jersey's Prudential Center on Tuesday night managed to inspire several viral moments. 

During Olivia Rodrigo’s performance, it appeared as if the stage was malfunctioning when pyrotechnics were set off and the set began to collapse. While the moment mirrored the music video for her song “Vampire,” Gomez was captured looking concerned and covering her ears. 

When fans began speculating why the superstar might have put her hands over her ears while the Guts artist, 20, sang, she was quick to shut down any rumors. The singer/actress replied to an Instagram post from BuzzfeedCeleb that featured both pop singers in the moment and the headline, “Selena Gomez looked extremely concerned during Olivia Rodrigo’s 2023 MTV VMAs performance — Here’s why.”

“I heard a loud noise and it scared me,” Gomez wrote in the comment section. 

The performer — who won the Moon Person for best afrobeats video with Rema for their song “Calm Down” — also sounded off in the comments about a separate viral Video Music Awards incident. 

When Chris Brown — who was charged with felony assault for getting physically violent with then-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009 — was announced as a nominee in the best R&B video category, Gomez was caught scrunching up her face in response. After the clip made rounds on social media, on iHeartRadio Australia’s Instagram of the moment that said, “Selena Gomez reacts to Chris Brown being nominated,” she replied, “Who cares lol.” 

The comment itself has since been widely re-shared.

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The candid photo of Gomez nestled into a blanket originally blew up across social media after her friend Dominic J West and shared it on his Instagram Story over the weekend of Aug. 13-14. Fans compared Gomez to a character at the end of a horror movie, a scene from Big Little Lies and the final scene of Titanic after Rose lets go of Jack’s hand. 

As the shot went viral, Gomez decided to respond by reposting two of her favorite memes on her Instagram Story, as reported by Elle.

One of these read, “horror movie characters sitting in the back of an ambulance after almost dying,” while a second penned alongside a black and white version of the photo said “my mom just sent me this old picture of my abuela from when she was still living in mexico, this was taken during a year without rain.” 

The “Calm Down” singer went viral again earlier this month, this time for her wide-eyed reaction to soccer player Lionel Messi during a game in Los Angeles after goalkeeper John McCarthy blocked a close-range shot from the Argentinian star at the BMO Stadium on Sept. 3.

In a video shared by Major League Soccer on X (formerly known as Twitter), Gomez was seen staring intensely before being left wide-eyed and open-jawed at 31-year-old McCarthy’s save.

The star also shared a snap of her expression on her Instagram Story, writing “Mood” over the photo.