I Just Found Out Megan Fox's Viral Schoolgirl Photos Were A Nod To Her Sports Illustrated Swim Shoot

Megan Fox made a return to Instagram in recent days with a series of stunning photos marking her return to public life. In one she’s rocking a lingerie-inspired post-Oscars look. In another, she threw on a crop top, a school girl skirt and knee-high socks.

Obviously, this is the type of thing that has the potential to break the Internet, anyway. However, some eagle-eyed individuals at Sports Illustrated actually noticed a connection to her 2023 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover shoot and a top she’d worn she really loved, as well.

At the time, Fox was already fit and said she hadn’t even prepped to be photographed. Instead, she had just thrown on a bikini (or several) over the course of the shoot and called it a day. Several years and one baby later, she clearly had no trouble fitting into a similar look. In fact, the cherry tee setup, which featured her sitting on a dock in a black bikini bottom and the cropped t-shirt, ended up being one of her favorites from the day, as SI noted:

An up-close and personal look at the more recent 2026 photoshoot reveals the tee is another cropped cherry tee, though not the specific one from her OG SI shoot. The new one is white with a splash of red cherries on the front. Her makeup artist posted a close-up of her work that conveniently also gave her fans a closer look at the tee, as well.

Clearly though, the whole styling seems to nod back at the time she was on the cover of the famous Swimsuit Issue of the magazine. She shared the laud with three other women: Martha Stewart, Kim Petras, and Brooks Nader, who was recently added as one of the leading ladies in the Baywatch revival cast. It was a big moment for the actress, who had (at the time) been making a splash after splitting from Brian Austin Green and getting back into her Hollywood work.

This time around, she’s split from MGK and taken another break from the public eye for a while. She’s getting back into the swing of things, and given how much she loved the cherry crop top, I’m not surprised to see another one make an appearance. What she’ll do next, we’ll have to wait and see.