I need to bring this up. Last week I posted about the trending social media phenomenon, the #charliecharliechallenge. I was actually pretty excited about it, thinking it was showing hope that today’s youth aren’t totally lost and are still game to muck about with some supposed spirits, or “demons” as they may be. I was saddened today, however, when I read that it’s highly likely that the #charliecharliechallenge and all its social media hype is a clever marketing campaign for an upcoming horror movie called The Gallows, released by the actual living demons Warner Brothers. This seriously bums me out because it it has really gotten some people – namely exorcists and Catholic school teachers in a vicious tizzy about messing with demons and opening gates that can’t easily be closed. All fun things religious zealots repeat over and over again to strike monotheistic fear into the hearts of parents living with children that like to play typical childish games.

I guess it shouldn’t surprise me since the last week has been full of falsehoods including the lady in Knoxville that wasted everyone’s time with an amber alert that was a hoax and the sweet video of the Russian waitress knocking the shit out of a guy that grabbed her butt also ended up being a hoax. It’s been a bummer of a week.

The Independent has made a pretty convincing argument that suggests the social media phenomenon is NOT, indeed, a marketing ploy but rather a film studio trying to capitalize on a current trend (*gasp* Hollywood would never!) but I’m not convinced. There are some pretty clever people out there and if the studio really did start this social media trend way in advance of their film (that coincidentally utilizes an antagonist spirit that also goes by the name ‘Charlie’) my hat is off to them for their brilliance.

Nevertheless the fact remains: Goddammit, Hollywood ruins everything.

See the full trailer and the teaser depicting the #CharlieCharlieChallenge below.