Cinemas ban teens in suits over TikTok trend for new Minions movie

Cinemas in the UK have banned groups of teenagers in suits during screenings of Minions: The Rise of Gru. This comes after a viral TikTok trend with the hashtag #gentleminions showed teenage boys dressing up in suits to watch the movie, Bloomberg reported. They also mimick the movie's main character, Gru, and his signature hand gesture. Some even brought bananas, the minions' favourite food.

Some of the partakers of the trend apparently displayed disruptive behaviour in the cinemas during the screenings, such as clapping loudly and cheering, resulting in cinemas putting in place dress code restrictions, Bloomberg reported. While it is unclear where the #gentleminions trend came from, Universal Pictures showed its support on Twitter, saying: "To everyone showing up to the Minions movie in suits: we see you and we love you."

https://twitter.com/UniversalPics/status/1542910345982902279

The Regal Cinema, Wadebridge banned unaccompanied children wearing suits from watching the movie. When MARKETING-INTERACTIVE attempted to purchase tickets from the website, a notice popped up saying: "Due to recent issues, unaccompanied children wearing suits will not be admitted." 

In a now-deleted Twitter statement, The Regal also said: "We are currently not admitting unaccompanied children wearing suits for Minions: The Rise Of Gru. This is due to the issues we have encountered over the last two days and its associated behaviour."

Meanwhile, Odeon Cinemas also took action, telling Bloomberg that due to a "small number of incidents" in its cinemas over the weekend, it had to restrict access "in some circumstances". 

Separately, a user on TikTok commented that the marketing team for the latest minions movie was smart to bring on board Jack Antonoff to produce the movie soundtrack because "Gen Z went from completely despising minions to dressing in minion cosplay" because the soundtrack is amazing.

Antonoff has worked with artists including Taylor Swift, Lorde, Fifth Harmony, and Lana Del Rey. Several netizens were excited about the soundtrack when Antonoff revealed it on his Instagram in May. "My favourite 70s songs performed by my favourite artists," he said. Among the list of artists include Diana Ross, Tame Impala, St. Vincent, Kali Uchis, Thundercat, Jackson Wang, G.E.M., and RZA. The movie is currently screening in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Hong Kong.

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