It’s prank season on social media, where parents are posting videos of giving their young kids fake knives to see how people react.
The TikTok prank consists of a parent handing their infant or toddler a Styrofoam or rubber “knife,” one that’s typically sold with Halloween costumes, and scaring the pants off spouses and grandparents. It’ might trigger some traumatizing memories for anyone who has tried to child-proof their home.
“I was very proud of myself,” Maisy Reynolds of Georgia, who pranked her husband Russ Reynolds, tells TODAY.com.
In Maisy’s TikTok video with more than 4 million views, her 8-month-old daughter Nellie sits in a highchair, gnawing on a realistic-looking toy knife.
“Hey babe, will you watch her for a sec while I go to the bathroom?” Maisy called out to her husband. “She’s eating in the kitchen.”
As Russ walked into the kitchen, he asked his daughter, “What are we eating?” before his face froze and he gasped.
“Babe, what the f—-,” said Russ, once he realized the knife was fake. “You scared the s— out of me.”
The comments section was entertained and unnerved.
- “That’s just so wrong.”
- “Definitely doing this prank when I have a baby.”
- “It still has a sharp tip.”
- “This baby played her role right! Perfect timing as dad walked in.”
- “Baby is like, ‘Give that back I’m not done scaring daddy.’ LOL.”
- “Still dangerous.”
- “His soul left his body for a sec.”
- “Gosh, I panicked when I saw that.”
- “My anxiety was more around her putting her eye out with the pointy end of the toy.”
- “The deep breath. He was scared.”
Maisy tells TODAY.com that she and Russ love pranking each other.
“I try to get a reaction out of him, but it’s really hard to pull off a prank because he’s always suspicious,” she says. The joke was believable, says Maisy, because their daughter is curious and “gets into everything.”
Maisy adds, in all seriousness: “We would never keep knives close to her.”
Russ tells TODAY.com, “I was definitely scared, but once I realized it was fake and my adrenaline left my body, I was fine with it. It was funny but my stomach dropped.”
“He is such a good sport,” Maisy says of her husband.
Other parents have tried the challenge, including actor Shay Mitchell who tricked her dad by sending one of her daughters running into the kitchen with a fake bloody knife, documented in an Instagram video.
Is the “fake knife” trend wholesome fun or risky play?
“Overall, this prank seems harmless and fun, but there are a few important things to consider before pulling it on someone,” Erika Stapert, lead psychologist at Manhattan Psychology Group, tells TODAY.com. “First, think about how the person being pranked might react — some individuals may have intense reactions like yelling, getting angry, cursing at the person who pranked them, or quickly grabbing the item, which could startle the child and upset them as well.”
She adds, “It’s important to avoid displaying intense emotional reactions in front of children, especially young ones, as this can be very overwhelming and frightening for them.”
Stapert says pranks can feel confusing to toddlers.