Chris Martin has opened up about his daughter Apple Martin’s much-discussed high-society debut at the prestigious Le Bal des Débutantes in Paris.
The Coldplay frontman described the experience as something he never imagined being part of, but embraced it out of love for his 20-year-old daughter.
Speaking a week before Apple’s appearance at the exclusive event, Martin, 47, shared his thoughts, saying: “It’s so not something I ever thought I’d do, but because I’m so in love with her, I’m like, ‘Okay.’”
The ball, held at the $1,000-a-night Hotel Shangri-La, saw Apple, one of 20 debutantes presented at the event, take centre stage in a stunning custom blue Valentino Haute Couture gown.
She was accompanied by her date, Count Leo Henckel von Donnersmarck, as well as her A-list family, including her actress turned Lifestyle guru mother Gwyneth Paltrow, brother Moses, 18, and grandmother Blythe Danner.
Apple’s father-daughter dance with Martin, captured in a TikTok video, got gushing comments from fans - but it all took a turn when online trolls accused Apple of “mean girl” behaviour.
She was slammed for “hogging the camera” from another debutante and “rolling her eyes” at her date, sparking a wave of criticism labelling her as “entitled” and “obnoxious.”
Defenders, including a source close to her mother's camp, were quick to rubbish the accusations. “Apple is a total girls’ girl,” the insider told DailyMail.com. “She would never mean to take the spotlight from anyone. To characterise her as a mean girl is very untrue.”
Even Aliénor Loppin de Montmort, the alleged target of Apple’s supposed behaviour, came to her defence, calling Apple “the nicest girl ever” in a statement to People: “[Apple] really doesn’t deserve an ounce of what she’s getting. She was the nicest girl ever towards not only me but all the debs!”
Weeks later, Apple herself addressed the drama with humour, posting a TikTok video poking fun at the controversy.
In the clip, she and two friends mimed a voiceover jokingly calling themselves “the funniest girls,” with Apple tossing a playful side-eye.
Drama aside, Martin also reflected on his life as an empty nester now that both Apple and Moses have moved away for college, calling the transition “sad.” Apple is attending Vanderbilt University, while Moses recently began his studies at Brown.
“It’d be weirder if they were still like, ‘I can’t leave,’” Martin joked.
