Gigi Hadid sparked fresh speculation on Sunday after she was seen wearing a gold band on her ring finger while preparing backstage for the 2026 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.
The 31-year-old model smiled as makeup artists worked on her look and she spoke with interviewers. The ring quickly reignited rumors that she and Bradley Cooper, 51, may have secretly married.
Hadid wore a sleek black halter-neck top with blue jeans, while her long blonde hair fell loosely over her shoulders.
Bradley Cooper’s former partner, model Irina Shayk, 40, was also backstage preparing for the show. Shayk shares her nine-year-old daughter, Lea, with the actor.
Alessandra Ambrosio, 45, and Adriana Lima, 45, were among the other stars photographed at Sony Pictures Studio ahead of the event.
Both models embraced the show’s signature style, wearing the famous pink-striped Victoria’s Secret robes as they prepared to take the runway.
Gigi Hadid, 31, showed off a gold band on her ring finger while getting ready backstage for the 2026 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show on Sunday
The lineup of models preparing to walk also included Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, 39, Jude Law’s 25-year-old daughter Iris Law and Natalia Bryant, 23, daughter of the late basketball star Kobe Bryant.
This year’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is being staged at Sony Studios in Culver City, California, restoring the brand’s high-glamour spectacle to Los Angeles for the first time in 19 years.
Victoria’s Secret has confirmed the return of several prominent Angels, including Hadid, Lima, Amelia Gray, Grace Elizabeth, Ashley Graham, Joan Smalls, Abby Champion, Alex Consani and Paloma Elsesser.
The highly anticipated show will also feature performances by Megan Thee Stallion, Katseye, Megan Moroney and Tate McRae.
Another headline-making moment is expected when the brand introduces its newest Angel on the runway. The model was recently selected through Victoria’s Secret’s YouTube streaming series, Angels Among Us.
Still, the excitement surrounding the event has been tempered by controversy over several notable names missing from the model lineup.
Earlier this month, fans threatened to boycott the show after a number of popular supermodels were reportedly turned down for spots on the catwalk.
Romee Strijd, 31, was one of the first models to publicly discuss being rejected at the last minute.
In a TikTok video, Strijd said she had attended the casting in New York in September.
She explained that she had trained throughout the summer, putting in extra effort after having two children. Strijd said she wanted to return to the show because the timing felt right, even after becoming a mother.
The supermodel smiled as she had her makeup done, while the gold band fueled rumors that she had secretly married Bradley Cooper, 51
Hadid paired a black halter-neck top with blue jeans and wore her long blonde hair loose over her shoulders
She spoke with interviewers before the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show
Cooper’s ex, model Irina Shayk, 40, with whom he shares daughter Lea, nine, was backstage getting ready as well
Alessandra Ambrosio, 45, and Adriana Lima, 45, were also pictured at the Sony Pictures Studio as they prepared for the show
Lima rocked hair rollers and a fresh-faced look
The ladies had a blast ahead of the show
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, 39, was also seen getting her hair and makeup done
Jude Law’s daughter Iris Law, 25, was also in attendance
The late Kobe Bryant’s daughter Natalia Bryant, 23, was seen preparing in a pink robe and cozy slippers
Strijd, who appeared in the brand’s annual fashion show from 2014 to 2018, claimed that she then did not hear back from organizers ‘for weeks,’ which had been a ‘rollercoaster’ and ‘mentally exhausting.’
But less than an hour later, the beauty took to the video-sharing platform again with a tearful update and explained that she had just received a rejection from appearing at the show.
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Re-enacting her conversation with her agent, she said she was told: ‘You were great, but they thought you wouldn’t fit in the show this year.’
The Dutch supermodel said there was confusion over the reasons behind her being turned down but that she had ‘closed the chapter.’
‘I don’t think I am going to cast any more in the future [for Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show] because I don’t like the way it went, I don’t like how the whole process went, I don’t like the way I was treated and I would love to keep the positive memories of VS,’ she concluded.
And she wasn’t the only one. Fellow former angel Frida Aasen, 31, commented on Strijd’s video with an update of her own.
The Norwegian beauty, who walked in 2017 and 2018, wrote: ‘I’m so sad you didn’t get it! I also went to the casting and it was a no. It sucks but sending you lots of love.’
The brand has confirmed that several of its leading Angels will return, including Hadid (pictured at the 2025 show)
Lima, the brand’s longest-serving Angel, will also return to the catwalk; Pictured at the 2025 show
Earlier this month, Romee Strijd, 31, fought back tears as she revealed that she’s been cut from the Victoria’s Secret catwalk show with just one week’s notice for ‘not being a good fit’
Pictured on the runway in 2018
In 2025, Bella Hadid ruled the runway after her health woes, Jasmine Tookes opened the show at nine months pregnant and Emily Ratajkowski made her debut
The show returned in 2024 following a six-year hiatus. However, the diverse runway, which featured plus sized models such as Ashley Graham (pictured), got a tepid response
As news of their absences began to circulate on social media, dozens of fashion lovers vowed to boycott the show.
‘Doesn’t fit with the show?! You ARE the show,’ one wrote.
‘I’m devastated. You literally embody angel energy, there’s so many other people out here rooting for you, this is so unprofessional having you there would’ve been such a highlight!’ another added.
The show, which debuted in 1995, returned in 2024 following a six-year hiatus. Last year’s runway featured familiar faces including Hadid and Lima, the brand’s longest-serving Angel.
WNBA star Angel Reese made history as the first professional athlete to walk in the show, while Jasmine Tookes showed off her baby bump on the runway.
For decades, the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show was one of the most coveted runway events.
It first kicked off in 1995 and immediately attracted immense buzz, with some of the biggest models on the globe walking in the fashion show.
By 2001 it was being broadcast live on television, and each year, millions tuned in to watch the stunning models strut their stuff and the A-list performers dazzle on stage.
For decades, the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, which debuted in 1995, was one of the most coveted runway events; Gisele Bundchen walks the runway in 2005
Tyra Banks pictured at the Victoria’s Secret Spring 1998 fashion show
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Should Victoria’s Secret focus on tradition or keep pushing for more diversity and inclusivity on the runway?
But in 2019, after more than two decades of it reigning supreme, the annual show was canceled amidst immense criticism over the brand’s lack of diversity when it comes to body types before then-chief marketing officer Ed Razek’s eyebrow-raising comments about trans and plus-sized models.
In 2024, the Angels returned to the catwalk after a six year hiatus with a more diverse roster including plus-size models, such as Ashley Graham, and transgender models.
However, the show was derided as lackluster and lacking the traditional glamour for which the brand was known.
By 2025, Victoria’s Secret’s new CEO Hillary Super announced plans to return to its ‘unapologetically sexy’ branding and move away from its woke rebrand.
The lingerie company embraced its bombshell roots after years of struggling sales and a tepid response to its diverse catwalk the year prior.
