9 Shocking Moments From Paris Fashion Week Blowing Up The Group Chats

If you’ve been online at all the past several days, you’ve likely encountered updates from Paris Fashion Week’s Spring/Summer 2026 season, which officially wrapped on Tuesday, Oct. 7. Between nearly all of Hollywood’s brightest flying to the French capital to sit front row at the shows (some *cough* Kim K *cough* only stamping their passports for a mere 24 hours in the city) and the slew of designers debuting their collections for their new places of employment, even casual social media lurkers’ FYPs were rife with PFW dispatches.

Fashion girls, however, have had a lot more to talk about. Apart from dissecting their favorite shows and adding future it bags to their shopping wishlists, several moments went viral and inevitably blew up group chats. Well-executed runway gimmicks were especially exciting this season. Thom Browne, for instance, sent models down its runway dressed in alien costumes. Meanwhile, model Anok Yai flexed her acting skills once again at Vetements, strutting the runway... in tears.

What ultimately had the style set in a chokehold were the glorious debuts. One example is Matthieu Blazy’s modernized take on Chanel, which infused the otherwise uptight brand with a certain lightheartedness.

Below, you’ll find all of these and more of Paris Fashion Week’s jaw-dropping moments that fashion girls won’t shut up about anytime soon.

Helen Mirren’s Dramatic Reading

Stella McCartney’s show was practically a tribute to her father, the Paul McCartney, beginning with a dramatic reading of The Beatles’ “Come Together” by none other than Dame Helen Mirren. Her performance kicked off the runway, which was soundtracked by the same 1969 hit.

Louboutin’s Football-Inspired Performance

Christian Louboutin always puts on a show. Following last year’s viral performance, where synchronized swimmers slid down a giant shoe-shaped inflatable slide, the brand took inspiration from a different sport this season: football.

Directed by David LaChapelle and choreographed by Blanca Li, the show featured a marching band, cheerleaders performing a routine, and dancers enacting a faux-football game. Oh, and did I mention there was also a live musical performance? The real stars of the theatrical display, however, were the ballerina-inspired shoe styles.

Meghan Markle’s PFW Debut

Nearly every Hollywood star you could possibly think of (men included) was present at the shows, including Jenna Ortega, Pedro Pascal, and Margot Robbie. But the one appearance that made fashion insiders audibly gasp was when the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, rolled up to Balenciaga in an elegant all-white number. It’s her first fashion show appearance in a decade and her PFW debut. Iconic.

Fashion’s Musical Chairs

The most hotly anticipated shows this season were the ones with newly appointed creative directors after an industry-wide shakeup. While some collections were met with mixed reviews, several debuts proved promising, including Pierpaolo Piccioli’s elegant take on Balenciaga, Jonathan Anderson’s hotly anticipated women’s debut at Dior, and Matthieu Blazy’s interpretation of Chanel, a brand that’s had exactly three prior creative directors in over a century.

Distressed Bags At Chanel

Speaking of Chanel, the most talked-about bag of the season came from the French maison’s show, and it’s not what you’d expect. Behold, Blazy’s crushed bags, which look like they sound: intentionally folded and beaten up. It’s the complete, distressed antithesis of typical quilted Chanel purses, which are treated with utmost care.

Kim Kardashian’s Familiar-Looking ‘Do

Despite only being in the city for a day, Kim Kardashian still managed to break the internet again by strutting into several shows looking like Kris Jenner’s doppelgänger. Look at that bob that looked exactly like her momager’s.

Celine’s Styling

Michael Rider’s sophomore collection for Celine was met with the same admiration as his first — particularly for his styling prowess (he styled the show himself). The fashion cognoscenti couldn’t get enough of the way he incorporated scarves, weaving them into jackets, bags, and tops, or the way he had models carry their outerwear, among other design details.

Aliens At Thom Browne

Thom Browne was out of this world — literally. Some of the preppy looks were donned by models wearing sparkly alien masks.

Anok Yai’s Tears At Vetements

If you’ll recall, at last year’s Vetements S/S 2025 show, Yai made waves when she ran dramatically across the runway and was dubbed the “runaway bride.” She later revealed that it was a spur-of-the-moment decision because of the “embarrassment” she felt after her heels kept getting caught on her wedding dress. This year, she continued her catwalk theatrics and walked the show in a booty-baring LBD while weeping actual tears.