Jessica Alba Deletes Nancy Kerrigan Halloween Costume After Backlash
Jessica Alba Deletes Halloween Post Depicting Nancy Kerrigan After Online Backlash
Actress Jessica Alba removed an Instagram photo showing her dressed as injured figure skater Nancy Kerrigan after facing severe criticism on social media.
The Tech TL;DR:
- Jessica Alba removed her Instagram Halloween post on November 2, 2026, following user backlash regarding her costume choice.
- Other celebrities, including Martha Stewart and Paris Hilton, also faced social media criticism for separate Halloween costume choices.
Jessica Alba Faces Backlash over Hockey Horror Costume
By the following day, Nov. 2, she had taken down the post, though images continued circulating on Threads.
The event featured a “Hockey Horror” theme that drew on the hockey romances “Heated Rivalry” and “Off Campus,” according to Cosmopolitan. For the occasion, Alba chose a white dress and white skates, combining them with a bandage streaked with fake blood wrapped around her knee to mimic a blotted moment from sports history.
The post immediately drew negative reactions online. Another user on X stated: Jessica Alba thought dressing up as a bloodied, clubbed Nancy Kerrigan was a cute Halloween idea,
and concluded that Hollywood had put everything into tactlessness this year, calling it sick. The assault aimed to prevent Kerrigan from competing in the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. Two days later, Harding won the U.S. Championships to qualify for the Olympics, though her title was later revoked after she confessed to knowing about the attack, while Kerrigan still won an Olympic medal.
Martha Stewart Apologizes for Homeless Person Costume
Alba’s costume was not the only celebrity attire to spark debate over the holiday weekend. Martha Stewart faced strong criticism after posting and deleting a photo of herself in torn jeans holding a cardboard sign asking for help, which commenters condemned as mocking homelessness, with one X user questioning what is wrong with people regarding Stewart as a homeless person and Alba playing down injured Nancy Kerrigan. Stewart initially issued a statement to People explaining she hoped to draw attention to the issue, before posting an apologetic follow-up admitting the costume was insensitive.
Paris Hilton also received questions from followers over a family “Beauty and the Beast” costume where Hilton wore a ballgown while her 2-year-old went as Chip the teacup. Hilton responded that London had asked to be the teacup, her favorite character.
Not all observers agreed that the criticisms were justified.
Pending Response
USA TODAY has reached out to Alba’s representatives for comment.
