Singer Taylor Momsen Bitten by Bat While Opening for AC/DC in Spain

Taylor Momsen attends the 2022 iHeartRadio Music Awards in Los Angeles, Calif., on March 22, 2022. JC Olivera/Getty Images for iHeartRadio

Singer Taylor Momsen, a former actress known for her role in the popular CW series “Gossip Girl,” was bitten by a bat during a performance in Seville, Spain, last week—an unexpected encounter the 30-year-old described as a true “rock and roll moment.”

The Pretty Reckless frontwoman, whose rock band is opening for AC/DC’s “Power Up” European tour, took to Instagram on May 31 to share a clip of the incident, which occurred at the La Cartuja Stadium on May 29.

In the video, Ms. Momsen can be seen addressing the crowd during a performance of her song “Witches Burn,” a track from her 2021 album “Death by Rock and Roll.”

“You guys are pointing at something, and I don’t know what you’re saying,” the musician says before noticing the bat latched onto her thigh. “There’s a [expletive] flying bat on my leg right now. Can someone help me, please?” she exclaims before joking, “I must really be a witch.”

The bat was promptly removed from her leg, leading Ms. Momsen to assure the crowd that everything was “all right.” She added, “And the bat’s fine; he’s gonna be my new friend.”

Medical Care for Rabies

Later in the video, Ms. Momsen is shown in what appears to be a hospital facility receiving medical attention with red marks visible on her leg.

“[The bat] was cute, but yes he bit me…so rabies shots for the next two weeks,” the singer-songwriter wrote in the video’s caption.

“Thanks to all the staff at the hospital who dubbed me #batgirl after seeing it on the local news that morning…more footage to come,” she added. “That’s one for the books!!!!”

Rabies, a viral disease transmitted by animals that affects the central nervous system, is known to cause inflammation of the brain and spinal cord and is nearly always fatal if not treated before the onset of symptoms, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The preventative medical treatment plan for people exposed to the rabies virus is called post-exposure prophylaxis, or PEP. In addition to wound care, a dose of human rabies immune globulin must be administered, followed by a series of rabies vaccines, which usually entails four or five shots, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The WHO indicates that over 1,100 bat rabies cases have been reported in Europe over the past 40 years, the majority of which occurred in Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, France, and Poland. However, occasional cases of bat rabies were also reported in Spain, among other countries.

The United Nations agency estimates that approximately 59,000 people die each year from rabies—99 percent of which are caused by bites from a dog infected with the disease.

The Pretty Reckless

Ms. Momsen founded The Pretty Reckless in 2008 alongside guitarist Ben Phillips, bassist Mark Damon, and drummer Jamie Perkins. Two years later, the rock band released its debut studio album, “Light Me Up.”

At the time, the singer was already a well-established actress, having portrayed roles in “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (2000), “We Were Soldiers” (2002), “Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams” (2002), “Hansel & Gretel” (2002), “Saving Shiloh” (2006), “Underdog” (2007), and “Spy School” (2008), among others.

However, in 2011, the former “Gossip Girl” star announced that she would be stepping away from her acting career to spend her time focusing on her music—a decision she touched upon during a September 2023 appearance on “Podcrushed.”

Speaking to the podcast’s host, fellow “Gossip Girl” actor Penn Badgley, Ms. Momsen explained that since she was introduced to acting at a very young age, she hadn’t fully embraced a career as an actor by choice.

“It was a childhood thing that, you know, I got put into,” she said, referring to her earlier onscreen credits, which include starring in a 1997 episode of “Cosby” when she was just a toddler.

“Two years old, I wasn’t making my own choices then, and literally as soon as I got to an age where I could make my own [decisions], it was like a click. I don’t know exactly what happened, but it’s like I woke up one morning and went, ‘Wait a second, I don’t have to do this. I don’t have to do this other job ... I can just play in my band, and I can tour and write songs. ... I can just do that,’” Ms. Momsen recalled.

“It was like a light bulb went off, and I uprooted and changed my whole life kind of overnight,” she continued.

Although the singer was unable to terminate her contract with The CW teen drama, she said “Gossip Girl” showrunners did agree to write her off of the show, stipulating that she could not go on to act in any other projects.

“I went, ‘That’s fine, that’s not what I’m trying to do,’” she said. “They really allowed me to, to follow my, my dream, and that’s beautiful, and so I’m forever grateful and thankful to them for that.”

The Pretty Reckless is expected to continue its tour with AC/DC, with more than a dozen upcoming shows scheduled across Europe throughout the summer.