Gypsy Rose Blanchard was finally released on parole from Chillicothe Correctional Center on Thursday, December 26th. In 2016, Gypsy Rose Blanchard pled guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to ten years in prison after aiding her boyfriend, Nick Godejohn, in the murder of her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard. Today she is arguably making more of a splash in the news than during the time of her original prison sentence.
Dee Dee Blanchard abused Gypsy Rose Blanchard during her entire life through the act of Munchausen by proxy, essentially convincing and treating her as if she is chronically ill. Dee Dee Blanchard forced her daughter to always remain in a wheelchair, changed her birthday to make her appear younger than she was, and made up fake allergies to a vast majority of foods and drinks. To escape this lifetime of seemingly never-ending abuse, Gypsy Rose Blanchard aided her boyfriend in the murder of her mother.
Ever since her recent release from prison, Gypsy Rose Blanchard has been making news headlines throughout the nation. This instant fame led to her multiple red-carpet appearances and immense social media success. Her release from prison marked a shift in Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s life – from ex-convict to social media celebrity. She now has 8.3 million followers on Instagram, 9.8 million followers on TikTok, and 17 thousand followers on X. She has even attracted the attention of other celebrities. For example, in an interview with Access Hollywood, Jason Momoa, commented on being Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s celebrity crush, responding to the question with, “Thank you. I’m honored,” signifying the cultural impact Gypsy Rose Blanchard attracted in a short amount of time.
Additionally, exactly one week after re-entering society, Gypsy Rose Blanchard released a Lifetime docuseries outlining the abuse she endured and her eventual murder, entitled The Prison Confessions Of Gypsy Rose Blanchard. To promote the docuseries, Gypsy Rose Blanchard and her husband Ryan Scott Anderson, whom she met and married while in prison, were seen posing for paparazzi on the red carpet. Similarly, following her release from prison, Gypsy Rose Blanchard told the press about her love and obsession with worldwide icon Taylor Swift. In interviews Gypsy Rose Blanchard explained how, in prison she used most of her money sent to her by her father to buy all of Swift’s albums and merchandise, transforming her into a Swiftie. Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s first mission when exiting the correctional center was to somehow meet Taylor Swift and go to one of her Era Tour concerts. Fortunately for her, Taylor Swift was scheduled to attend a Sunday football game to support her newly official boyfriend, Travis Kelce, a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs. Gypsy Rose Blanchard told reporters and the public that she will be appearing at the game to hopefully be able to meet her idol Swift. This led to a sharp increase in ticket sales for the Chiefs’ game, making local security worried an altercation might break out between fans and possibly between the two celebrities. Unfortunately for Gypsy Rose Blanchard, her parole officer forbade her from attending the game and banned her from the state of Missouri, which many questioned and found suspicious due to the lack of aggression or interaction between Swift and Gypsy Rose Blanchard.
Ultimately, the sharp increase in cultural relevance and obsession with Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s life has left many people with mixed feelings. Some believe it’s dangerous to idolize Gypsy Rose Blanchard without mentioning her past actions of attempted murder, almost as if the media is rewriting Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s life to make her marketable for younger generations to fall in love with and idolize. Time will only tell if Gypsy Rose Blanchard will stay relevant or if she will disappear and finally live the “normal” life she longed for as a child.
