InStyle kept the Ryder thread alive, because the then-and-now arc is irresistible. The kid who once photobombed from a hip now towers in the frame, same eyes, same grin, broader outline. Their selfie reads like a family checkpoint: different skyline, same closeness. It’s a quiet announcement that time flies and bonds hold.
This is where celebrity becomes a shared language. Followers, many with kids the same age, projected their own timelines onto the image and felt briefly seen. The post doesn’t argue; it recognizes. It says, “Yes, this is what it feels like when childhood accelerates,” and leaves space for your own caption. As content strategy, it’s elegant: one image, two audiences—fans of Kate, and fans of their own families—meeting in the comment thread and nodding together.