Fans Accidentally Thought This Celeb Was Beyoncé At The U.S. Open

Every year, the U.S. Open tennis tournament is a star-studded affair. And this year, even more stars are filing in as all of tennis fandom watches Serena Williams play her last tournament ever before retirement. On the tournament’s opening night and Serena’s first round match, celebrities ranging from Ben Stiller to Bill Clinton spilled into the Billie Jean King Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens to watch the tennis queen play — and fans at home thought they saw another queen in the stands.

“#Beyoncé at the #USOpen,” an account belonging to Choni Francis tweeted alongside a quick cut video of a woman wearing a black mask and hair pulled back in low ponytail.

The only problem is that the video was actually of Laverne Cox, the actor and LGBTQ+ activist who is best known for her starring role on the Netflix series Orange is the New Black. Francis followed up his tweet with another longer shot of Cox sitting in the stands with the same caption.

While a case of mistaken identity is usually not a laughing matter — especially for people of color who often endure claims that all people of a certain race look the same — Cox and the rest of the Internet were able to laugh about it. For her part, Cox took the mix-up in stride and posted the video post to her Instagram account. “Not me getting mistaken for @Beyonce at the #USOpen tonight then trending on Twitter as the internet cackles over the mistaken identity. These tweets are funny as hell. Enjoy!!!” she wrote in the post before reiterating her support for Serena.

Only a few hours earlier, Cox had posted a video of herself getting ready for the evening soundtracked by none other than Beyoncé herself. A refrain from “PURE/HONEY” off of her most recent album Renaissance plays as Cox struts to the mirror, fixes her outfit, and poses in front of the camera.

It’s not the first time that Cox has let her Beyoncé fandom be known; In 2020, she told Entertainment Tonight, “Everybody knows that I live for Beyoncé. I try not to worship gods on earth, or goddesses, but I worship Beyoncé.” Before that, she even stepped into Queen Bey’s shoes for a legendary performance of her girl group Destiny Child’s hit song “Lose My Breath” on Lip Sync Battle.

At the end of the night, not only did Serena win her first round match, but Twitter user David Dennis Jr. said that being confused for Beyoncé must be “a career highlight” for Cox. “Absolutely!” Cox agreed.

While Beyoncé herself hasn’t commented on the mix-up, she did celebrate Serena’s legacy by narrating a Gatorade short film titled Love Means Everything that was released on Aug. 29 ahead of the tennis legend’s first round match. The film showcases iconic moments from Serena’s career, which broke down barriers for women of color — and specifically Black women — in a sport that has not always been accessible to middle or lower class people.

“It’s a love that we’ll remember through the generations,” Beyoncé narrates in the film, speaking to Serena’s resilience and passion for the game. “A love that started a movement. A movement to always love exactly who you are. And who you can be. To be so in love with your identity that your very essence cannot be contained ... To cherish every muscle and every curve your body exhibits. A movement to always love being a proud Black woman.”