Gentleminions On the Loose

Some movie theatres have banned young people from wearing formal suits during screenings of the animated film “Minions: The Rise of Gru”. 

The reason behind this decision is a bizarre trend on TikTok.

This social media trend managed to convince mostly youngsters to dress in sleek suits and pose in formation with steeple hands, sometimes with a banana in their breast pockets. 

According to the BBC, videos have gone viral online that feature these young persons who refer to themselves as ‘Gentleminions’ having descended on cinemas in big groups and cheering loudly during the screening and racking up millions of views in some cases. They seemed to be enthusiastically embracing the trend and genuinely enjoying the movie. And movie studio Universal Pictures even endorsed the trend on Twitter. 

It’s unclear why this trend has taken off. In fact, it is entirely disconnected from the content of the film because minions wear blue overalls and goggles, not suits and ties! 

I suppose you can call this an act of performative moviegoing. TikTok users maintain it’s just for fun. And it is pertinent to point out that many groups have not caused issues. 

Unfortunately, some “gentleminions” are not acting so gentlemanly and they reportedly created a ruckus and which caused several UK venues to cancel screenings and others to give huge numbers of refunds. 

Some viewers and theatres had complained about the TikTok trend and were concerned about the well-being and viewing experience of younger viewers at screenings. 

As per the BBC, Guernsey's only cinema had to nix further screenings of the movie, blaming "stunningly bad behaviour", including vandalism, throwing objects and abusing staff. 

The Regal Cinema in Wadebridge, Cornwall, posted a notice saying it would no longer admit "unaccompanied children wearing suits" to screenings of the movie. 

I guess it is just boisterous fun turning into unruly behavior – and as far as I'm aware, this is only happening in the UK?!