Unruly cinema-goers have been criticised for disrupting screenings of Jack Black’s new video-game adaptation A Minecraft Movie.
Social media users have shared footage of young people screaming and throwing popcorn while watching the family blockbuster. Director Jared Hess told Entertainment Weekly the jubilant reaction to his film, which stars Black and Aquaman’s Jason Momoa, is “bananas” and “way too fun”.
But some UK cinemas have warned people against taking part in the TikTok craze, while charities said the rowdy behaviour can be “scary and distressing” for autistic people.
Christine Flintoft-Smith, of the National Autistic Society, said: “Everyone should be able to enjoy going to the cinema, but for some autistic children and their families it can already be a challenging experience, due to busy crowds, loud noises and unfamiliar environments.”
The trend has echoes of the ‘Gentleminions’ meme, which led to screenings of animation Minions: The Rise of Gru being disrupted in 2022.
What is happening at Minecraft screenings?
Young people are erupting into thunderous celebration at a scene in which Black’s character in A Minecraft Movie shouts “chicken jockey”. This refers to a baby zombie riding a chicken, which is considered ultra-rare in the sandbox video game.
One TikTok video from a mother of an autistic child showed her 10-year-old son with his head down and sitting on the floor. She said some people at the cinema were shouting and throwing sweets at him, which she described as “absolutely revolting behaviour”.
The concerned mother urged those considering taking part in the trend to “please think again” and to be mindful of people with special needs.
She added that a her child, who also has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), experienced meltdowns and struggled to regulate his emotions after watching the film.
Other videos showed empty drinking cups and popcorn left on cinema floors.
Black, who plays Steve in the film, surprised fans by attending a recent screening in the US, but warned them not to throw popcorn.
What was the ‘Gentleminions’ TikTok trend?
The ‘Gentleminions’ trend involved large groups of young people – mostly teenage boys – wearing suits to screenings of the Minions: The Rise of Gru three years ago.
Their unusually formal attire was linked to a seemingly ironic appreciation of the children’s movie, a prequel to the Despicable Me franchise. Many were seen copying the film’s supervillain Felonius Gru (voiced by Steve Carrell), and his signature hand gesture.
But some taking part in the craze disrupted screenings with loud cheering, shouting and clapping. Others were filmed throwing bananas at the screen, in an apparent reference to the favourite food of Gru’s yellow helpers, called Minions.
The videos went viral on TikTok, generating millions of views, and led some UK cinemas to cancel screenings or enforce dress-code restrictions.
Guernsey’s only cinema stopped showing the film after “stunningly bad behaviour” from moviegoers, including alleged vandalism and abuse of staff. Mallard Cinema manager Daniel Phillips-Smith told the BBC that young children were “in tears” as a result of the disruption.
Meanwhile, Cornwall’s Regal Cinema banned any unaccompanied children who are wearing suits from watching the movie.
The Odeon cinema chain said it was forced to “restrict access” to some screenings due to “a small number of incidents”, but the Vue chain said it was still welcoming all customers to see the film.
Universal Pictures, which produced the film, tweeted: “To everyone showing up to @Minions in suits: we see you and we love you.”
Despite – or perhaps helped by – the controversy, The Rise of Gru proved to be a huge hit. It took more than £46m at the UK box office, becoming the third-highest grossing film of 2022, behind Top Cruise sequel Top Gun: Maverick and sci-fi epic Avatar: The Way of Water.
Carrell last year told the Radio Times that he “loved” the TikTok trend, saying: “What I loved about it was that it was not ironic. Those kids had grown up with Despicable Me much like my kids did. And they unironically still love it.”
A Minecraft Movie is in cinemas now, and Minions: The Rise of Gru is available to buy and rent online
