In 2024‑25 the celebrity world has been awash with controversies: from social‑media influencers facing potential legal liability, to top pop stars battling plastic‑surgery rumours, to another major star publicly addressing quitting rumours. These stories may appear distinct on the surface, but together they reflect deeper shifts at the intersection of fame, mental health, media scrutiny and accountability.

This article examines three cases: 1) the alleged legal action involving influencer Eugenia Cooney, 2) the plastic‑surgery speculation around Selena Gomez, and 3) the career‑quitting chatter from Ariana Grande. In each we find overlapping themes of public pressure, body politics, platform responsibility and sensational media cycles.

Eugenia Cooney: The Lawsuit That Isn’t Fully Clear

Eugenia Cooney rose to prominence via YouTube and TikTok, known for her extremely thin frame and candid discussion of eating‑disorders. In recent months a wave of commentary and online threads has claimed that Cooney is involved in a lawsuit, or at least mentioned in one, in which plaintiffs allege that platforms such as TikTok failed to protect minors from content harmful to body‑image and mental‑health.

While no major mainstream news outlet has published a verified complaint naming Cooney as a defendant, discussion persists in comment forums about her being “Exhibit A” in a multi‑district litigation against TikTok for mental‑health harms. One post states:

The lawsuit isn’t against Eugenia, it’s against TikTok. The plaintiffs … are using Eugenia as one of their examples of TikTok … content that is harmful to minors.”

What wedo know:

Rumours of her death resurfaced via AI‑generated content in 2025.

Her social‑media activity has been disrupted, leading to speculation about bans or legal strategy.

She has long been criticised for promoting or normalising extreme thinness, which some argue may influence vulnerable teenagers.

The absence of a formal, publicly documented lawsuit raises questions. If plaintiffs are indeed suing TikTok rather than Cooney herself, and if Cooney is merely referenced, the framing shifts from “influencer being sued” to “platform liability”. Nonetheless, the legal‑cloud narrative around Cooney has triggered renewed debate about influencer responsibility, platform moderation, and eating‑disorder content online.

Key issues:

Does an influencer bear responsibility when young viewers emulate harmful behaviour?

What is the liability of platforms for hosting such content?

How does one verify claims of lawsuits when much is driven by social‑media speculation and Reddit threads?

Until public filings or court documents emerge, the Cooney saga remains a grey zone—an instructive case of how digital fame and mental‑health risk intersect in complex ways.

Selena Gomez & the Plastic‑Surgery Rumours

Selena Gomez has long been in the spotlight—not just for her music and acting, but also for her open battle with lupus and her kidney transplant in 2017. In July 2024 she vehemently addressed rumours that she had undergone plastic surgery. Responding to a TikTok video posted by a plastic‑surgeon assistant, Gomez wrote:

Honestly, I hate this. … I have Botox. That’s it. Leave me alone.”

Her frustration is understandable. Speculation about her face, body or procedures seemed to ignore the health challenges she has publicly faced. The assistant’s original video attempted to compare earlier and recent photos of Gomez, but later issued an apology after the backlash.

Key takeaway:

Female celebrities especially face invasive commentary on looks, age and “fixes”.

When medical conditions (like lupus) are at play, the pressure intensifies.

Gomez’s frustration points to a desire for autonomy and a limitation: “Leave me alone.”

Why this matters:The narrative of “botched plastic surgery” is often used in tabloid headlines, but the deeper story is about how external voices seize on physical change, how aesthetics and transparency collide, and how celebrity appearance becomes a public spectacle rather than a personal matter.

Ariana Grande: Rumours of Quitting—but Not Really

In July 2025 Ariana Grande took to Instagram to dispel rumours that she might quit music:

Very silly of you all to assume that just because i have my hands full with many things that i plan to abandon singing & music … !!! it is and has always been my lifeline.”

This statement followed speculation that her focus was shifting toward acting (e.g., her role in the Wicked sequel or other film projects) and that she might deprioritise her music career.

Grande also revealed that she came close to quitting music entirely before taking on the role of Glinda in Wicked, saying the experience “totally rearranged everything about my relationship to creating… I didn’t think I was going to… ever again.”

Thus the narrative transforms from “Ariana quits music” to “Ariana evolves creative focus but remains committed”. The “quit” rumours create a tension between public expectation and personal artistic reality.

Broader themes:

Pop stars increasingly cross media (music ↔ film) and face questions about identity—are they singers, actors or brands?

The public often assumes “when you don’t see the same schedule, you must be quitting.”

Grande’s statement emphasises continuity and adaptation, rather than abandonment.

How These Stories Intersect

Though seemingly separate, the three cases share deeper resonances:

Platform & accountability:

Cooney: social‑media platforms’ role in amplifying harmful content, the murky legal terrain.
Gomez: celebrity bodies subjected to public commentary, with platforms (TikTok, Instagram) as amplifiers of speculation.

Grande: use of social media to clarify narrative, protect brand and engage directly with fans.

Body, image and mental‑health pressure:

Cooney: eating‑disorder concerns, influencer culture and young, impressionable viewers.

Gomez: health conditions, body changes, public scrutiny of appearance.

Grande: shifting beauty norms, transparency about injectables and the stress of perfection.

Media cycle of rumours & clarifications:

Cooney: rumours of lawsuit/death, unverified claims.

Gomez: tabloids about “botched surgery” vs her direct denial.

Grande: rumours of quitting vs her intentional statement.

Broader industry implications:

Legal frameworks lag behind influencer culture (Cooney).

Celebrity appearance narratives reinforce societal pressures (Gomez).

Artists balancing multi‑platform careers must manage public expectations (Grande).

What’s Really At Stake?

These stories are more than celebrity gossip—they reflect shifts in how we think about influence, image, health and accountability in the digital era.

For young audiences & influencers:When influencers like Cooney become the centre of lawsuits or criticisms for body‑image effects, it signals an increasing expectation that content creators bear responsibility for their impact. It also raises questions about how we protect vulnerable viewers online.

For celebrities and the media:Gomez’s fight for autonomy over her body and appearance illustrates the persistent pressure female stars face regarding their looks. It shows how medical issues, ageing, shifting styles and public assumptions collide in harmful ways.

For artists in transition:Grande’s case shows that the boundary between “star” and “brand” is becoming ever more fluid. Fans notice absence (no album, fewer tours) and fill the gap with speculation. Managing narrative, transparency and expectation becomes vital.

For industry & regulation:

Platforms must grapple with content moderation: harmful body‑image content, health misinformation, influencer liability.

Media must rethink how they treat celebrity bodies, ageing and appearance—not just sensationalise “botched surgeries” but consider health, context and agency.

Artists and their teams must proactively manage career transitions—fans may assume “quitting” when in fact one is simply evolving.

What to Watch Going Forward

Cooney: Will there be apublic filing or verified lawsuit connecting her to platform liability for minors? How will TikTok respond? Will influencer regulation change?

Gomez: Will she continue to push back against speculation? Might she publicly engage more with medical/heath narratives rather than being the subject of them?

Grande: How will she balance music vs film vs brand? Will she tour again? How will she redefine herself in the next chapter?

Also relevant: how media outlets and social‑platform algorithms handle body‑image content, speculations about appearance, and the thin line between health transparency and sensationalism.

Conclusion

The tales of Eugenia Cooney, Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande might seem unconnected at first glance—but they share a common terrain: the intersection of digital fame, body scrutiny, creative identity and public accountability.

For Cooney, the challenge is the role influencer culture plays in potential youth harm and the legal limbo of platform liability. For Gomez, it is about reclaiming her body narrative and pushing back against invasive speculation. For Grande, it is about clarifying her artistic path and confronting the assumption that absence equals quitting.