Selena Gomez defended after reaction to Olivia Rodrigo performance goes viral

Selena Gomez has been defended after her reaction to Olivia Rodrigo's performance at the VMAs went viral.

It's never the VMAs without any drama is it? And last night's 2023 show was no different.

From backstage 'arguments' between Megan Thee Stallion and NSYNC to wardrobe malfunctions, the VMAs really did have it all this year.

At the top of the show in New Jersey, Olivia Rodrigo belted out a bunch of her hits, such as 'Guts' and 'Vampire'.

It was the 20-year-old's 'Vampire' performance that really made the headlines overnight though, as Rodrigo recreated parts of the music video.

And if you've ever watched the music video, you'll know that it's pretty wild - so of course, not everything was going to go to plan on stage.

The unique performance, which consisted of lots of shrubbery and blazing sparklers, suddenly saw the singer get rushed off stage by a security guard.

That came after a bunch of pyrotechnics seemed to malfunction, seeing a red curtain to fall from the ceiling and causing a lot of worried faces in the audience in New Jersey.

MTV

While it all seemed pretty concerning at the time, it was later confirmed the reason for all the chaos was a stage malfunction which was all actually pre-planned.

Shortly after Rodrigo was ushered off stage, a blue curtain dropped in front of the previously collapsed stage.

Of course, Rodrigo then reappeared accompanied by a group of dancers who were all wearing pink pleated skirts and crop top.

The singer then got into her second track of the night - now that's a way to make an entrance!

As all the chaos was unfolding though, the camera panned to many famous faces and their reactions in the audience - including Selena Gomez.

Gomez was seemingly left a little confused by the fiasco and even appeared to put her hand on her ear, with one person on X (formerly known as Twitter) writing: "Not Selena Gomez covering her ears during Olivia Rodrigo performance."

MTV

But many people have come out and defended Gomez after the clip went viral on social media.

The 'Selena Gomez News' Twitter page posted: "Selena Gomez’s reaction was to the planned STAGE MALFUNCTION of Olivia Rodrigo’s set. She was confused, scared and worried for Olivia bc she didn’t know it was planned.

"LEAVE SELENA ALONE. Stop trying to make her a villain & use her to attack Olivia. Leave both women alone."

Meanwhile, another added: "Exactly. There was another tweet about her not cheering on Demi's performance too like? Leave her alone."