From Gorilla Glue Girl to the Free Britney Movement, Moments That Went Viral in 2021

It’s a wrap for Ellen. The talk show host announced that season 19 would be the last of her hit show, which came as a surprise for fans who have watched and adored her show since 2003.

Not to be outdone by Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos went to space, too. His voyage on the Blue Origin rocket took place on July 20.

The power that is Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith couple went viral over, and over, and over in 2021 by sharing details about their relationship and sex life. Between the details shared in his memoir and her television show, the world now knows more than they might want to about Will and Jada. 

It was shocking when track star Sha’Carri Richardson was suspended before the Olympics for testing positive for marijuana. Afterward, she Tweeted, “I am human.”

Yes, Meta Gala outfits are strange, but Kim Kardashian took her 2021 look to a whole new level. The reality star arrived wearing head-to-toe black. And the Balenciaga look was really head to toe, meaning every inch of her body and face were covered. It was an interesting moment, for sure.

Yes, Netflix’s hit show “Bridgerton” technically came out on Christmas of 2020, but many spent 2021 lusting over the show and the star of the show, Regé-Jean Page.

Billie Eilish always makes headlines, but she almost broke the Internet in May when she revealed her sexier side on the cover of Vogue magazine.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers faced an onslaught of criticism after it was learned that he had never revealed that he had not been vaccinated against COVID-19. The realization came after Rodgers tested positive for COVID. He then attacked “woke,” “cancel culture."

Simone Biles was the talk of the Tokyo Olympics when she chose to protect herself and her mental health by withdrawing from competition. “My mind and body are simply not in sync,” she said.

Lil Nas X sure knows how to work the media and make himself go viral, which he did when he was “pregnant” with his latest album, “Montero.”

Details of Super Bowl LV are fuzzy, but the memes that followed after The Weeknd performed will live on forever.

Following the January 6 Capital riots, former President Donald Trump was banned from various social media websites, including Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Reddit.

Just when the world was healing from the tumultuous year that was 2020, President Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol.

The world lost so many people in the entertainment industry in 2021, including DMX, Larry King, Prince Philip, Norm Macdonald, Willie Garson, Gregg Leakes, Michael K. Williams, Suzzanne Douglas, Paul Mooney, Tawny Kitaen,  Olympia Dukakis, Dustin Diamond, Cicely Tyson, Cloris Leachman, Hank Aaron and more.

It was a shock after Dr. Seuss’ estate announced that due to racist and offensive imagery, many of the author’s books would no longer be published.

Alec Baldwin accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza when he fired a prop gun on the set of “Rust.”

It was a bittersweet day on January 8 when the world saw Trebek’s final “Jeopardy!” episode after the beloved television host died from pancreatic cancer.

It was a confusing moment when Facebook announced it would change its name to Meta. But it is safe to say that the world will continue to refer to the platform as Facebook for the time being.

It was a wrap for Kim Kardashian and Kanye West when she filed for divorce on February 19. The pair were married for six years.

It’s back! Just when the world thought the events and people from “Tiger King” could get any weirder, “Tiger King 2” dropped. And the entertainment continued.

Move aside, “Tiger King.” Netflix’s Korean drama “Squid Game” became a hit in 2021, which led to memes inspired by the show and everyone dressing as characters for Halloween.

Sadly, blogger and influencer Gabby Petito became a household name after she went missing after being on the road with her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie. Her body was later found on September 19.

When Derek Chauvin was found guilty for the murder of George Floyd, every detail of the case and his sentencing flooded the internet.

With her newfound freedom, Britney Spears went after all the people she says have done her wrong. Under attack by the pop singer were her haters, body-shamers, people involved in the documentaries about her and her family.

In 2021, it was hard to get online without seeing the #FreeBritney movement everywhere. And it paid off as the singer was finally released from her conservatorship in November.

It was the interview that was memed and quoted worldwide when Meghan and Harry spoke with Oprah Winfrey. The Royals revealed shocking details about dealing with racism and being cut off financially while Oprah, visibly shocked, listened on.

The world was thrilled when Adele came out of hiding after her divorce to announce that a new album, “30,” was on the way. From then on, every performance, interview and Instagram photo she posted was headlining news.

Tessica Brown had everyone saying, “My hair, it don’t move” after she went viral for sharing her nightmare tale about using Gorilla Glue in her hair instead of gel. She’s now capitalizing on her embarrassing incident. Among other things, she sells hair products and is nursing a budding rap career.

With her wins during the March award show, Queen B made history by breaking the record for most wins by a singer in Grammy history.

Nine people died, and hundreds were injured when a crowd surge at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival in Houston, Texas, led to chaos.

Kourtney Kardashian proved she was the most interesting to look at when her romance with Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker took off. Photos of them making out, kissing and making out some more graced everyone’s smartphone screens, and now that they are engaged, it’ll probably be the norm.

It was one thing when Kim Kardashian filed for divorce from Kanye West, but the world was really shocked and baffled when the rumors began that Kim moved on to “SNL” star Pete Davidson. Since the news broke, the pair have been spotted at dinners, holding hands and living their best lives.

It was the end of an era when Kim K and the rest of the Kardashian/Jenner klan announced that “Keeping up With the Kardashians” was coming to an end. But don’t worry: another Kardashian reality show was inked, and more Kardashians are on the way.

Those longing for “Gigli 2” got the next best thing when Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck sparked things back up. It was like 2002 all over again as the world watched, and are still watching, the glamourous pair’s every move.

It finally happened: the cast of “Friends” returned for a reunion. And every detail of the get-together was discussed and analyzed for weeks following the release of the episode.

It was a race to see which billionaire would go to space first, and Richard Branson won. The Virgin Galactic took off on July 11, and Branson and the crew enjoyed minutes of weightlessness and seeing the earth from above.

Poet and activist Amanda Gorman stole the show during the 2021 Inauguration when she read her “The Hill We Climb” poem. She also made history by being the youngest poet to read at an inauguration.

Most of the details of Joe Biden’s Inauguration are probably a distant memory, but most remember Bernie Sanders and his mittens. Those mittens, Bernie bundled up looking unbothered and bored, and the memes that followed provided endless Internet entertainment.