In mid-December, one of the hottest spots to be seen in New York City was the Deuxmoi holiday party in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. The fete featured tiny cucumbers stuffed with imitation crab, ears on the wall adorned with sparkly earrings, and appearances by “Real Housewives of New York City” star Leah McSweeney, comedian Ziwe, influencer Sophia Culpo, and Miriam Haart from “My Unorthodox Life” . just to name a few. But as for who hosted this extravaganza? Their identity remains anonymous.
That’s right. The person who was throwing the party – someone who may or may not have been there the entire night – was unknown. Guests stomped around looking for the modern day Gossip Girl, asking strangers, “Are you Deuxmoi?”
“Real Housewives of New York City” star Leah McSweeney with comedian Ziwe Fumudoh at the Deuxmoi holiday party. Sansho Scott/BFA / Sansho Scott/BFA
So . what is Deuxmoi?
Deuxmoi is an Instagram account that skewers the media and Hollywood with salacious pieces of reader-submitted celebrity gossip. Some posts are blind items – where details are revealed, but the celebs’ identities are not – while others disclose full stories but keep the submitter’s identity veiled. And sometimes, it’s both.
Going viral at the start of the pandemic in , the account now boasts 1.3 million followers and has completely transformed the celebrity news industry. So much so that even Adele is worried her name will appear in one of Deuxmoi’s black-and-white Instagram stories.
“A lot of people were like, ‘Oh, my God, congratulations! You made it! Adele knows who you are!’ I just laugh. I love everyone’s reaction more than my own,” the person behind Deuxmoi – yes, the person – shared in a phone interview with TODAY.
“Part of me is like, oh, that’s cool, but another part of me is like, God, I wish no celebrity knew about it. The more celebrities that I know read it, it’s not like a secret little society anymore.”
The voice on the phone belongs to a woman – and only that much did she confirm. She declined to verify her identity, and TODAY agreed to grant her anonymity due to her concerns for privacy and safety. But one can imagine what a person with the keys to all of Hollywood’s biggest secrets might be like. She sounds like she could be in her late-20s or early-30s. She might live in Manhattan, and maybe even grew up outside the city. She comes across as a down-to-earth girl’s girl, but also someone who wants to find their way into that swanky New York Fashion Week after party.
This is all just speculation, of course. Whoever she is, Deuxmoi (we’ll use her moniker for this article) is very serious about keeping her name shrouded in secrecy.
“You can’t set me up on a f— blind date! I’m like, ‘How’s that going to work?’ There’ll be paparazzi outside and someone will call (gossip site) Deuxmoi, or whatever it’s f— called! It ain’t happening.” – Adele on Deuxmoi Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Imag
‘The floodgates opened’
The Deuxmoi Instagram account launched in 2013 and was initially linked to a blog of the same name, which means “two me” in French. Originally a lifestyle site, it featured “interviews with interesting people,” gift guides and celeb fashion inspiration boards. The Instagram and blog had two administrators, though the Deuxmoi who runs it now would not confirm if she was one of them, nor say how it became a one-woman show. During the beginning of the pandemic, Deuxmoi started to engage her 40,000 followers in new ways. One day, she posted an innocent callout: “Send in any experiences you’ve had with a celebrity.”