Chicago, Illinois - Online speculation about a "special guest" at the DNC's final night fizzled out, leaving influencers and media outlets red-faced as no surprise star crashed the party.

Social media went wild for a while, with Beyoncé the favorite to fill a supposed empty slot in the schedule on the night when Kamala Harris accepted her party's presidential nomination.

The X account Angry Staffer hyped up the rumors, dropping some strong hints to its 600,000-plus followers.

TMZ joined in with an all-caps headline on its homepage screaming "performing at DNC's final night!!!" above a picture of the superstar.

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Taylor Swift was also one of the names that circulated in media and political circles, with fans trying to figure out the location of her private jet.

Even former presidential nominee and current Republican Trump critic Mitt Romney jumped on the bandwagon.

"Contrary to fake news posts, I am not the surprise guest at the DNC tonight. My guess is that it will be Beyoncé or Taylor Swift," he posted on X. "So disappointing, I know!"

His fellow Republican George W. Bush was put forward as a contender for the rumored surprise spot, with Republicans against Trump posting a picture of Bush embracing then first lady Michelle Obama to the account's 765,000 followers on X.

In the end, TMZ and the various high-profile X accounts who had spread the rumors were forced into embarrassing climb-downs and apologies.