Danish comedian Rasmus Wallbridge fooled for months in TV2 prank series

A four-month hoax

Danish public broadcaster TV2 ran a six-part series called 'Alle elsker Rasmus' ('Everyone Loves Rasmus') built around comedian and actor Rasmus Wallbridge. For four months the show convinced him that he would finally shoot a feature film of his own. Around 150 friends, acquaintances, colleagues and celebrities knew the project was staged and played along, and in some cases they filmed him with hidden cameras. According to reports, a close friend and business partner was among those who instigated the scheme. Wallbridge reportedly missed the first four months of his newborn child's life because of the filming.

The reveal came in the final episode, in which Wallbridge is told in an empty cinema that the film project had been staged. His friend Martin Johannes Larsen, who initiated the show, delivered the news. Sound experts concluded that the reaction Wallbridge showed had been manipulated, since his hard laugh was a copy of an earlier one with cut-and-paste editing. Larsen later apologised to Wallbridge on Instagram.

TV2 pulls the series

TV2 had planned weekly releases, but after several days of criticism it put all six episodes on its streaming service TV 2 Play at once. The episodes then disappeared again shortly afterwards. Programme director Dorthe Thirstrup apologised unconditionally to Wallbridge and the participants in a press release, saying the broadcaster had not looked after Rasmus well enough and that her judgement had failed. TV2 also announced an internal investigation into how the show received its approval. Initially the director defended the concept, saying a psychologist had accompanied Wallbridge closely and that he could have refused publication.

Reaction in Denmark

Culture minister Zenia Stampe told broadcaster DR that TV2 had acted in a completely blatant and unethical way and had kept Wallbridge fooled for months. Prime minister Mette Frederiksen said she hoped the unfortunate case would make broadcasters and media think harder about what they publish and what moral and ethical responsibility comes with it. The editor-in-chief of the newspaper Politiken wrote in an opinion piece that everyone can see this is bullying of the worst kind. Critics called the series malicious and spoke of psychological violence, while calls for an independent review and personnel consequences grew louder. Online, many compared the format to the 1998 film The Truman Show, in which Jim Carrey's character learns his whole life has been staged, and some suggested 'Alle mobben Rasmus' ('Everyone Bullies Rasmus') would have been the fitting title.

Wallbridge's first appearance since the reveal

Wallbridge initially said nothing publicly, then broke his silence on Instagram, where he said he sees what is being said about him and written to him. He said he was not in a position to join the discussion, and he asked TV2 to stop making formats like this. He also corrected reports by TV2 and Politiken on Instagram. On the evening of 3 November he performed on stage for the first time since the reveal, and the audience gave him a standing ovation as he walked on. One spectator told Danish media it was moving and described the moment as a hug from a distance.