The teenager who started a trend so viral it’s caused cinemas to cancel screenings of Minions: The Rise of Gru entirely has finally been located, and importantly, shared his opinion on July’s biggest movie release.
In news that you could not possibly explain to a small Victorian child, Minions: The Rise of Gru is both demolishing the box office and also meme culture, out of almost nowhere. The latter statement can be attributed all to one Australian teenager who shared a TikTok which has now accrued 35 million views on the platform of him going to see the film in suits alongside friends.
The 18 year-old’s TikTok had the impact on Minions that Sony were dreaming for with all those Morbius memes just a few months prior: it actually led to the movie making money. While it made money, it’s also caused countless issues at cinemas with reports of rowdy theatregoers ripping up seats and causing havoc.
But the most important thing about all of this, the very root cause, has been ignored by many: What did the guy who started this all-encompassing trend have to say about it, and what did he think of the movie? Well, the trendsetter Bill Hirst told Australian publication Crikey why he did it.
“Everyone’s always loved a bit of Minions. They’re big on TikTok. So we thought it would be funny to chuck on some suits and go to a showing.”
He was then probed on what he thought of it, and you’ll be pleased to know the Sydney teen was a big fan of Illumination’s latest entry into the Despicable Me franchise, saying it “brought back some good memories”.
“Film was great, good, short film. 90 minutes. Brought back some good memories.”
Minions: The Rise of Gru is currently in cinemas, unless you’re wearing a suit in some theater chains.