Balenciaga Becomes A Trending Topic After Rumored Disney Collaboration

Balenciaga, the french fashion house that was recently under fire for featuring children in an adult-themed holiday ad campaign back in November 2022, becomes a trending topic on social media as rumors spread of an alleged rebranding that includes a collaboration with Disney. The conversation on Twitter pushed Balenciaga to be the top trending fashion and beauty topic, but do those rumors have any substance?

Is Balenciaga partnering with Disney?

No, Balenciaga and Disney are not collaborating. As of Monday, February 6th, 2023, no established fashion media outlets like WWD, Vogue, or Business of Fashion are reporting a partnership between the two brands, and neither Balenciaga nor Disney are confirming a union on their social media platforms or websites, balenciaga.com and disney.com.

The rumors may stem from a Variety article entitled, "Disney Plus Unveils Fashion Biopic ‘Balenciaga’ As First Original Spanish Series." Published on November 12, 2021 -- over a year ago--, the article announced Disney+'s first original scripted Spanish series created by Lourdes Iglesias, Jose Mari Goenaga, Jon Garaño and Aitor Arregi. Releasing in 2023, the 6-episode series will follow Cristóbal Balenciaga's rise from his beginnings as the son of a seamstress and a fisherman to building one of the most iconic fashion brands in the world. 

For those who don't understand why the rumored collab would draw so much backlash, in November of 2021, Balenciaga released images from a Holiday Ad campaign featuring children holding teddy bears dressed in BDSM leather harnesses and fetish gear. Following up that campaign was another ad that featured a hidden --or poorly hidden- Supreme Court case, United States v. Williams which, "upheld part of a federal child pornography law known as the PROTECT Act, finding it was not in violation of the First Amendment right to free speech or expression," as explained by MTSU. These two incidents quickly turned Balenciaga into a brand that promotes pedophilia and sexualizes children. In a now-deleted Instagram post, Balenciaga apologized for any harm the ads may have caused. "We sincerely apologize for any offense our holiday campaign may have caused. Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign. We have immediately removed the campaign from all platforms," part of the apology stated. 

Image Courtesy: Kering

Singer Sam Smith also contributed to the Balenciaga conversation. Taking the stage at the 2023 Grammy Awards with Kim Petras, Smith --who identifies as non-binary-  performed "Unholy" with a devilish set design and costumes. Within the song, the 2023 Grammy Award winner for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance mentions Balenciaga in the lyrics which only adds fuel to the social media fire. "Give me love, give me Fendi, my Balenciaga Daddy," are the exact lyrics. 

Stay tuned to this space as we update you on additional details. 

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