The footage, uploaded to TikTok by Tasnim Alatout, shows the man stopping his performance after being ridiculed. “Tom the mime leaving the show because of these teenager’s behavior,” a text overlay in the video reads as the SeaWorld employee is recorded standing in front of the water tank. A teenage girl can be seen walking directly into the mime—dressed like Waldo and with his face covered in white paint—as he looks up into the bleachers. The teen laughs and pretends to slap Tom as all of her friends surround the mime.
A video of a group of teenagers making fun of a mime at SeaWorld has sparked outrage online
Share icon Image credits: tasnimalatout Another girl then stands beside the mime with her hand over her mouth while she records the interaction, also smiling. Afterward, a boy from the group can be seen wrapping his arm around Tom’s shoulders as the mime exits the show, waving to the crowd. Upon Tom’s exit, one of the teen girls wearing a black USC sweater stands in front of the crowd and begins pretending she’s a mime before running up to her friends.
The clip, seen nearly 6 million times, shows the teens pretending to slap the mime, recording him, and copying his gestures
Share icon Image credits: tasnimalatout Since being uploaded five days ago (February 18), the video, captioned “That’s not nice and not funny,” has been viewed nearly 6 million times. People criticized the teenagers’ behavior online, with some labeling the incident as a case of assault. “Commenting so the algorithm brings me back when this situation is resolved, because Tom the Mime got assaulted,” someone wrote.
As a result of the teenagers’ behavior, Tom the mime was forced to cut his performance short
Share icon Image credits: tasnimalatout “I’m glad he walked away. They would’ve kept egging on to get some kind of response. Protect yourself first. So disappointing of these teens,” another person penned. Another highlighted the importance of Tom’s job: “He deserves respect just like any character or cast member, he brings happiness to many, I’m sorry this happened to him.” Others congratulated the mime for maintaining his composure and not responding to the teens, writing, “Tom the mime did well not to place them on their bottoms. Calmer than me for sure.”
People online defended Tom, labeling the group’s actions as “disrespectful” and questioning their parents
Share icon Image credits: Tomthemime Many social media users focused on the Gen-Zers’ parents and the values with which they were raised. “Kids/teens have no respect this day in time. It’s embarrassing. It’s also a shame that parents aren’t raising their kids to be better than this,” a separate individual wrote, while another said, “Just imagine what the parents are like.” However, others downplayed the group’s actions, arguing that the teens were just enjoying themselves and didn’t intend to cause any harm. “I don’t get it the kids were just having fun they don’t even seem like bad kids what’s the big deal?” a TikTok user commented, while someone else said, “I’m a parent. Blame me? I think it’s possible these kids were trying to participate, but went too far.”
Watch the viral video below
On his personal TikTok account, Tom showcases his work at the popular tourist destination, entertaining audiences with his humorous antics, which include organizing impromptu group photos among strangers and spontaneously joining families on the bleachers. Tom mentioned that he doesn’t typically encounter such behavior at work. “Most of the people at my shows are having a good time and want to see me perform,” the mime explained to Bored Panda via email. “Unfortunately, sometimes, you might get someone who wants to get involved and takes it too far. That’s what happened I feel. “I did have to leave my show 3 minutes early however because they were very aggressive.” Tom, who has been working as a mime for almost 35 years, emphasizes that the most rewarding aspect of his job is having the chance to make people laugh. What’s more, he often receives messages from people expressing how his shows or videos have brightened their day. “I even have people telling me it helps them with depression, and some people going through rough times. Knowing this just motivates me even more to do shows and videos.”
Many people believe the teens’ parents are to blame for their behavior, while others said they should’ve been “removed” from the theme park
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