Bella Hadid reveals real reason she was ‘struggling’ at Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show

Bella Hadid set the record straight on why she was “struggling” closing out the 2025 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.

After causing online buzz with how slow she walked at the end of Wednesday’s show, the model took to her Instagram Stories to let fans in on the weight of the wings strapped to her back.

“Ok we’re not going to pretend these wings weren’t 50 pounds but HOW BEAUTIFUL,” the 29-year-old wrote in a now-deleted post, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Hadid initially hit the VSFS catwalk in a red-hot lingerie set, strutting confidently down the runway as Karol G sang to the crowd.

She kept a different pace closing out the show in silver, fringed lingerie complete with matching wings.

Hadid, who switched her usual brunette tresses for blond, made it to the end of the stage before she began to struggle.

She walked more slowly, looked down at the ground and even held on to the straps of her wings to balance the weight better.

Despite never showing any distress on her face, she was seen dropping her head once the lights went out.

Fans shared their concern via social media, calling out Hadid’s recent Lyme disease flare-up.

“She was struggling,” a TikTok user commented, while another added, “I thought she was gonna fall.”

“She might [have] almost died or she’s in survival mode,” one netizen speculated.

However, one person defended her, saying, “I think the wings were just heavy,” while another noted how the closing Angel’s wings are “always insane.”

Hadid’s return to the runway came one month after her mom, Yolanda Hadid, posted photos from a hospital stay.

In some of the September shots, Bella was hooked up to an IV in a hospital bed; in others, the accomplished equestrian covered her mouth in distress.

Yolanda, 61, praised her daughter — who was diagnosed in 2013 — as a “badass” and a “survivor.”

She wrote, “No child is suppose to suffer in their body with an incurable chronic disease. I admire your bravery and your willingness to keep fighting for health despite the failing protocols and countless setbacks you have faced.

“I am so proud of the fighter that you are,” the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” alum continued at the time. “You are not alone, I promise to have your back every step of the way, no matter how long this takes.”

A week after the photos were shared on social media, Hadid was photographed walking through Paris.