“Chicken Jockey!” You may have heard this phrase scrolling through TikTok, yelled down hallways, or even shouted in a crowded movie theater. But, where does it come from? Well, the answer is…A Minecraft Movie.
Wait, seriously? A Minecraft Movie? Yes. Released April 4th, 2025, A film based on a video game full of dirt blocks and square sheep has broken the internet and box office records. According to Forbes Australia, A Minecraft Movie has raked in $163 million just in its opening weekend, one million more than Barbie, making it the most successful movie so far this year. How could this be? Is the movie in 5D? Is it starring Jacob Elordi? Unfortunately, no. Interestingly, the numbers might not be related to the quality of the movie, but the experience.
When you purchase a movie ticket, it usually doesn’t come with live chickens, food fights, and audience members screaming Steve’s—AKA Jack Black’s—viral lines every ten seconds.
However, it’s all fun and games until a theater employee is body-slammed or an alleged slushie is thrown at the head of a special-needs child.
Open your phone and type in “Minecraft movie chicken jockey” to witness fans screaming, throwing food, holding up live animals, and ripping their shirts, all while watching the movie-turned-meme. Spreading across social media faster than a global pandemic, A Minecraft Movie is truly an enigma.
Sophomore Bobbie Strus, who went to see the movie with friends, said, “Probably the whole theater said [chicken jockey]. I definitely said it. I’ve never seen anything like it; people were yelling and clapping at everything.”
So, where does one draw the line between fan enthusiasm and outright disrespect?
Typical movie etiquette includes throwing your trash away, staying quiet, and keeping your phone on silent. For A Minecraft Movie, etiquette includes throwing food on the floor, keeping employees busy cleaning up your mess. Being quiet? Heck no! Who needs quiet when you could recite the “Steve’s Lava Chicken” song by heart? These kinds of actions are seen as disrespectful by everyone except those taking part in them. The audience may get to walk away, but someone is always left to deal with the aftermath.
According to Variety, movie theater janitors work extremely late hours, starting whenever the last movie ends. Meaning, if the last movie shows at 11:30 p.m., the movie theater janitors work from then until morning. In some reported cases, they work until around 9:30 a.m. So, when audiences display a lack of theater etiquette, the hard-working employees lose more sleep and money because many of these establishments don’t pay overtime. People know that there are janitors who have to go clean up after them, but they just don’t care. It’s easier to enjoy the moment when you’re not stuck dealing with the consequences.
Jack Black himself got involved, making an appearance at the AMC Century City movie theater, located in Los Angeles, to put a stop to the audience’s shenanigans. He said, “No throwing popcorn, no lapis lazulis, and absolutely no chicken jockeys!”
However, it’s important to note that not all theaters are like this. Some, you’ll hear screaming, and others, you may hear crickets. Sophomore Christopher Every, who attended a showing, said, “Yeah, there was a lot of cheering and yelling, but nothing too crazy at this theater. People were just excited to be there.”
Yet, few have noticed there’s more than just the smell of popcorn butter lingering in the room. There’s also Raisinets, Milk Duds, Coca-Cola, Sour Patch Kids, and oh, wait! Misogyny!
On October 13, 2023, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour was released in theaters. According to The Hollywood Reporter, girls were recorded dancing and singing along to her music, but their fun was tainted with hatred as soon as the clips reached the internet. So, how come social media sees chucking snacks and screaming as funny, but girls dancing as disrespectful? A movie about a stereotypical male activity, video games, normalizes making workers’ jobs harder, but dancing during a movie surrounding a female cliché gets flamed? Hmm.
