Great Purge of 2026: Virat Kohli, Taylor Swift, Priyanka Chopra And Kylie Jenner Among Others Lose Millions Of Followers, Here's Why

Instagram users across the globe woke up on Friday to a shocking drop in their follower list. Those hit the hardest were celebrities who boasted millions of followers on the social networking app. Netizens are calling it the “Great Purge of 2026.” However, what it really is and how it has left so many celebrities losing out on a million followers has left social media users scratching their heads.

The massive follower cleanup has triggered a discussion about fake followers and the practice of manufacturing engagements. As per reports, the follower reduction comes after a cleanup by Instagram's parent company, Meta. It was done as an effort to curb fake accounts on the platform and remove bots.

Among the most affected by this move is Kylie Jenner. As per a social media page, PopBase, which reportedly lost around 14 million followers. Users on the platform have also reported that Virat Kohli has lost over 2 million in the 2 days. On the contrary, K-pop band BTS has gained 36,700 followers in the last few hours. Pop star Shakira has also gained significant followers. Selena Gomez is also said to have lost around 6 million followers.

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Smaller creators on the platform have reportedly lost between 2%-5% followers. A spokesperson of Meta confirmed that the exercise was carried out to remove inactive accounts from the platform. The statement read, “As part of our routine process to remove inactive accounts, some Instagram accounts may have noticed updates to their follower counts. Active followers remain unaffected, and any restored suspended account will be included in the count again after verification."

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