The director behind the latest Minecraft movie has addressed the ‘Chicken Jockey’ craze, which has led to theaters experiencing disorder globally, prompting police to issue warnings.
The Minecraft Movie premiered in theaters on April 4, setting box office records while also encouraging fans to flout cinema rules so much that some young viewers have been ejected.
This Warner Bros film features a high-profile cast, including Jason Momoa, Jack Black, Danielle Brooks, and Jennifer Coolidge.
The disturbance is linked to a scene with Jack Black’s character, Steve, who says the now-viral phrase ‘chicken jockey.’
For those unfamiliar with Minecraft, a chicken jockey is a rare occurrence in the game where a baby zombie rides a chicken.
In the game, creating a chicken jockey requires a sequence of rare events: encountering a zombie horde, which appears only at night, and hoping there’s a baby zombie among them.
Moreover, players must be lucky for a baby zombie to spawn near a chicken to ride it.
The Minecraft Wikipedia states that the chance of encountering a chicken jockey in a ‘chicken-free environment’ is 0.25 percent, increasing to 0.4875 percent if there are chickens nearby.
The excitement for the chicken jockey scene in the movie is causing audiences to react enthusiastically, with fans reportedly jumping, throwing popcorn, and shouting Black’s phrase ‘chicken jockey’ during the screening.
Jared Hess, the film’s director, admitted to losing sleep over the viral movement it has inspired, as he’s captivated by the audience reaction videos circulating online.
“It’s been so bananas,” he stated in an Entertainment Weekly interview. “It’s been way too much fun. People are sending me these hilarious speeches that teenagers are giving right before the movie. It’s so hysterical, man. I’m staying up way too late.”
This frenzy has led to police arriving at theaters, and some venues are now restricting unaccompanied minors and large groups from entering.
The Township Theatre in New Jersey released a statement after an ‘unfortunate situation’ where ‘large groups of unsupervised boys engaged in completely unacceptable behavior, including vandalism.’
“It’s weird when you’re having too much fun and the cops get called,” Hess continued. “It’s funny because I think it’s just literally cheering and throwing popcorn, which is so funny to me that cops are getting called for popcorn. Yeah, it’s hilarious.
“I’ve seen so many funny videos. It’s great, especially when people are climbing on their friends’ shoulders and standing up and cheering for those moments. It’s like this crazy anticipation. But, man, I’m just glad people are making memories with their friends and families.”
Hess was unaware that the scene involving Black’s Steve and Momoa’s Garrett entering a boxing ring and encountering the chicken jockey would be so impactful.
“It’s just a bonanza,” he added. “I’m just so happy that people are finding joy in going back to cinemas and seeing things as a community, as a group of people.”
“It’s like we’ve become so isolated on our devices, and it’s just fun to experience things as a group of human beings. I think people are starved for that experience. So it’s fun that they’ve found it in this goofy movie that we’ve made.”