Just hours after Zendaya turned heads at the 2025 Met Gala in a stunning white Louis Vuitton suit and wide-brimmed hat, TikTok erupted with a sense of déjà vu. The “Zendaya Theory,” a meme rooted in an old photograph from 2014, resurfaced — and it’s going more viral than ever. But what exactly is it, and why are people suddenly obsessed with a hat from over a decade ago?
Here’s what ‘Zendaya theory’ is all about
Back in 2014, Zendaya attended the Teen Vogue Young Hollywood Party wearing an oversized black Emporio Armani hat. The bold fashion choice quickly became a light-hearted internet talking point. Fast forward to May 1, 2025, as TikToker @thesnakesbloxx revived that moment with a satirical twist. In a viral video that now boasts a good amount of views, the creator paired a clip of Zendaya avoiding a question about her favorite Beyoncé song with a photo of her in a big hat, all set to ominous music.
That’s when the joke seemingly took shape and the “Zendaya Theory” was born. Except, there is no actual theory. It’s a parody of internet creepypastas and conspiracies. The meme thrives on being purposefully vague and unsettling, suggesting something dark is hidden in the hat photo, while never providing any real explanation.
Social media users quickly jumped on the trend, creating their own eerie edits of Zendaya in the hat, spliced with horror soundtracks and cryptic captions. Some even posted fake missing-person posters using the image. Ironically, nothing actually happened — there seems to be no particular secret, scandal, or story. It’s the mystery itself that keeps the meme alive.
At the Met Gala 2025, Zendaya donned yet another wide-brimmed hat, but this time a sleek white version, and it didn’t take long for TikTok to connect the dots. The return of the hat was all the fuel the “Zendaya Theory” needed to explode back into virality. The coincidence felt too perfect and eerie, and it reignited the digital inside joke.
Originally reported by Devanshi Basu on ComingSoon.
