Entertainment
The 14 Best and Worst Celeb Instagram Moments in 2013
We all love a good Instagram photo. How else does someone like Justin Bieber get three thousand little hearts each time he posts a selfie that's completely identical to the last? How else would we know that Miley Cyrus ruined a perfectly good Bulls jersey (above)? How else would we learn that Zooey Deschanel has two really, really cute dogs? We wouldn't. And that's why celebs on Instagram have us hooked: We get seemingly unfettered access to our favorite stars' lives. For some people, that entails enjoying Bieber's selfie tour, for me that means looking through Mindy Kaling's filtered photos and coming to the conclusion that if we ever hung out we'd probably be best friends.
But making your photos public means that your fun little social media toy might sometimes become a news story. Some celebs know this and use it their advantage (see: Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, and Beyoncé) and others seem to keep employing the post-first-then-think rule (sorry, Biebs). Either way, it provides a lot of entertainment for the rest of the Internet.
So from fuzzy pups, to real-life mermaids, the desecration of Michael Jordan's Bulls jersey, and since-deleted reunion photo, let us trot down memory lane with these unforgettable moments on a little ol' site called Instagram.
The Phantom Reconciliation
Justin Bieber posted this selfie (is there any other kind of Justin Bieber Instagram?) with his ex-girlfriend Selena Gomez back in July and caused quite a ruckus. He quickly pulled the image down once he realized that most people assumed cozying up to his ex in a selfie meant they were back together. This is where an understanding what to post and what not to post would go far, Biebs.
Image: Justin Bieber/Instagram
The Beyoncé Chop
Bey blew all of our minds when she posted this photo of a pixie haircut after getting into a tussle with a fan during one of her performances. True, it was no time at all before she began wearing extensions and we forgot all about the old fashioned beauty of this backstage image, but for a moment in time, we saw King B without her royal golden mane. And as it turns out, she was still pretty damn regal. All hail King B.
Image: Beyonce/Instagram
Raging Bull Nation
Fans of the one and only Michael Jordan weren’t exactly pleased when Miley Cyrus posted this photo of her in a bikini made from his jersey in August. But as usual, nothing can stop the Miley train, so her haters were forced to simply hop to the left.
Image: Miley Cyrus/Instagram
Rihanna: Part Time Mermaid
While she may have started the year Instagramming bouquets of marijuana from Chris Brown, RiRi has cleaned up her social media game (for now). In October, she gave us this gorgeous underwater pic that makes her look like a real, live mermaid. Rihanna, remember this image next time you think we want to see filtered images of leafy green.
Image: Rihanna/Instagram
Lena Dunham Wins Throwback Thursday
While most of us are posting baby pictures or that really delicious sandwich we ate in Paris that one time, Lena Dunham took to Throwback Thursday like a champ. In August, she confessed her sexual past by posting a question she sent to a Time Out New York advice columnist when Dunham was still a 19-year-old virgin. Basically, Dunham was a total Shoshanna with a side Hannah Horvath sarcasm.
Image: Lena Dunham/Instagram
Aaron Paul's 'Breaking Bad' Spoiler
Just before the series finale of Breaking Bad, Aaron Paul blew our minds with one last “spoiler.” And by spoiler, he meant “hilarious photo of Walt, Skyler, and Jesse in a potentially post-coital pose.” It was the perfect moment of levity before the series ended and destroyed our TV-loving hearts forever.
Image: Aaron Paul/Instagram
Revenge is a Dish Best Served Without Pants
After months and months of the Internet, media, and paparazzi hounding Kim Kardashian about her pregnancy body (which many awful people deemed “too big”), Kimmie took her revenge by posting this nearly naked image of her post-baby body. It prompted Kanye West to tweet, hinting that he might want to have sex with the girlfriend he made a baby with. The Internet lost its mind.
Image: Kim Kardashian/Instagram
Who Needs a Press Release?
Justin Timberlake certainly doesn’t. After announcing his musical comeback on Twitter, Timberlake took up Instagramming and began releasing details such as track listings for The 20/20 Experience 2 of 2 and debut dates for singles like “TKO.” Suddenly, Instagram feels more useful than silly.
Image: Justin Timberlake/Instagram
In Poor Taste
Of course, not everyone gets it right. Pretty Little Liars star Ashley Benson took to the selfie machine to poke fun at Amanda Bynes in July, after Bynes behavior went from weird to worrisome. (She’d lit a fire in a neighbor’s driveway and thrown a bong out a New York City window at this point.) Benson taught us an important lesson about using a different kind of filter on Instagram: your brain.
Image: Ashley Benson/Twitter
She's Gone Full Miley
And what would a 2013 list be without an excess of Miley Cyrus? With this image of a Rolling Stone tattoo she got on the bottom of her feet… while being interviewed by Rolling Stone, Miley has officially shown us every piece of her body she can get away with showing us on national television. Congrats?
Image: Miley Cyrus/Instagram
North West, Precious [Angel Emoji]
It wouldn’t be a year on Instagram without a celebrity baby, and in 2013, North West was the celebrity baby. (Sorry, Baby Prince George. Your parents don’t talk about you emphatically on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Kris. North wins.)
Image: Kim Kardashian/Instagram
Puppy for Puppy's Sake
And because half of the good stuff on Instagram involves pets, this list wouldn’t be complete without Zooey Deschanel’s darling picture of her human-like pup. Look at the way he’s sitting on the couch with her! Give that little ragamuffin a cover story in People Magazine already.
Image: Zooey Deschanel/Instagram
Proud Mamas
In October, two celebrity pregnancies came out in style. Rachel Zoe and Gwen Stefani proved that fashion doesn’t have to exclude their future children while showing off their gorgeous maternity gowns in October and the levels of adorable just about killed us.
Image: Rachel Zoe/Instagram
The Family Instagram To Squash The Infamous TwitPic
Robin Thicke was in hot water after the 2013 VMAs when a young woman posted a Twitter photo of her with Thicke in which the singer’s hand appeared to grab her rear end. In response to the hootenanny, the married “Blurred Lines” crooner posted this image of his wife Paula Patton and their son on a happy “I’m not cheating” vacation excursion.
Image: Robin Thicke/Instagram
