Olympic diver Tom Daley said he still could not believe the glamorous photos were really of him after a full drag makeover by Plastique Tiara.
Plastique Tiara, 27, whose real name is Duc Tran Nguyen, posted the transformation shots to Instagram on October 4. The Vietnamese-American performer, who has nearly five million followers on the platform, has built a following on makeovers for celebrities including Selling Sunset’s Chrishell Stause and social media star Nicolas Sturniolo.
Daley, 32, retired from competitive diving after the Paris Olympics in 2024, closing out a career that spanned five Olympic Games and earned him five medals. Since stepping away from the sport, he has made television appearances including on last year’s Celebrity Traitors and maintained his public profile as an avid knitter and crafter.
The post showing Daley’s makeover has already drawn 137,000 likes and over 2,000 comments. Plastique Tiara captioned the photos “From Diver to Diva,” showcasing Daley’s shift from his familiar boyish look with short brunette hair to a blond bombshell aesthetic.
“I still can’t believe this is me,” Daley commented on the post himself.
Traitors UK star Stephen Libby was among those reacting in the comments section, writing: “I’m blown AWAY!” Another follower added: “Oh my god! A princess,” while someone else declared they were “losing their mind” over the dramatic results. One particularly enthusiastic response read: “HELLOO?!! THIS IS WITCH CRAFT!”
Daley’s husband, Oscar-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, 52, had his reaction captured on camera. Black, who has been married to Daley for nearly a decade and shares two children with him, was visibly stunned by the transformation.
“Oh my God, I’m straight now. I mean you are [expletive] beautiful, I don’t understand what’s happening to me, I always knew you were gonna make a beautiful woman but this is exceptional,” Black said to his spouse in the filmed response.
Daley later joked that he might pick up their children from school while still in his drag outfit.
The couple, who have roughly 20 years between them, have spoken previously about how the age gap feels less significant with time. “As we get older, I think we both align very well on what we want to achieve,” Daley said last year. “We’re both really big dreamers. I think that was the biggest thing for us, that we’re both so supportive of each other. We don’t limit the other person’s dreams. We really make each other feel like we can achieve whatever we set our minds to.”
The makeover marks another high-profile collaboration for Plastique Tiara, who has established herself as a go-to artist for dramatic celebrity transformations through her social media presence.
Daley has kept busy since his retirement with various media projects while continuing to document his family life and crafting hobbies for his own substantial following online.
Black’s screenwriting credits include the 2008 film Milk, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.