Pregnant Monkey offers a biting parody of celebrity culture. Referencing the iconic 1991 Vanity Fair cover of a nude, pregnant Demi Moore, Banksy replaces the glamorous human subject with a grotesque, anthropomorphised monkey visibly pregnant, cigarette dangling from her mouth.

The work satirises society’s fascination with celebrity motherhood and the commodification of the female body. By substituting a revered Hollywood image with a crude caricature, Banksy strips away the glamour, exposing the absurdity and spectacle surrounding fame. The cigarette adds a final layer of provocation, challenging ideals of purity, health and maternal responsibility.

Through its unsettling humour, Pregnant Monkey underscores Banksy’s ongoing critique of the media’s power to shape desire, distort values, and blur the boundaries between reverence and ridicule.