The family of William Chapman is publicly pleading for people to stop circulating the video of him being mauled to death by a tiger—after President Trump himself posted it mockingly to Truth Social.
“The family are utterly devastated by their loss and are struggling to come to terms with what has happened,” they said in a statement. “The publication and circulation of deeply offensive media content is causing them severe distress at an exceptionally vulnerable time. We ask people to stop doing this.”
The tiger can be seen sinking its claws into Chapman’s neck and back. Chapman wags his finger at the animal before the video cuts off—ending before he is killed..
“Don’t ever mess with nature!” Trump captioned the Tuesday afternoon post. He also posted an accompanying compilation of both real and AI-generated animal attacks just one minute later.
Trump has only doubled down since, going so far as to post an AI video of himself in Chapman’s place, but “defeating” the tiger while “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” plays in the background.
Chapman, a 23-year old former child actor, was described by his family as a “bright, warm and engaging young man” who had been dealing with “significant mental illness over a number of years.” For Trump he appears to be a punchline.