NOT DEAD: Rumours of action star Jackie Chan's death set Twitterverse ablaze.
THE internet has again tried to kill martial arts star Jackie Chan, but according to his Facebook page the action star is alive and kicking.
The rumors started after a bogus Facebook memorial page titled “Jackie Chan R.I.P 08/17/2011″ - now called “Jackie Chan R.I.P” - appeared.
Twitter went into overdrive with questions from frenzied fans until Chan's Facebook page debunked the story.
"Jackie is alive and well and working hard on his next movie!" the message reads.
"Don't believe the latest death rumors."
But isn't all this familiar?
If you were Chan you might be getting a little sensitive - this isn't the first time the internet has tried to prematurely end his career.
Earlier this year a bogus tweet kicked of a storm of speculation after it was rumored the star had suffered a heart attack.
"Jackie is alive and well. He did not suffer a heart attack and die, as was reported on many social networking sites and in online news reports," his Facebook page retorted.
"Jackie is fine and is busy preparing for the filming of his next movie."
The prank originated on a fake website made to look like the Australian news website Yahoo!7News.
Before the March hoax reports of Chan's death were also frequently the prank de jour on the 4Chan website.
Chan is not the first celebrity to defiantly remain alive despite being targeted by the combined power of social media's heaviest hitters.
Jurassic Park star Jeff Goldblum was the victim of a similar bogus story that he had died in a ski accident in New Zealand, sparking a spate of copycat celebrity death hoaxes.
No comments:
Post a Comment