Does a video show a Disney park character in a Minnie Mouse costume smoking and giving the middle finger during a break? No, that's not true: Videos online show this same man in the same suit standing on the Las Vegas Strip, where people are known to dress up as various characters and solicit tips from tourists. There is no evidence the man in the video worked as an authorized Minnie Mouse for Disney.
Videos and images have circulated on social media since at least 2024, including in a post (archived here) shared on Facebook by David H. Harris Jr. on May 31, 2025, with a caption that read:
When your kid is hugging Minnie Mouse at DisneyWorld, this is who they are really hugging.
Does anyone else find this disturbing?
This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of Facebook.)
Several videos show the man with the Minnie head piece off in confrontational exchanges with tourists, including with him making obscene gestures or comments.
In this Instagram video (archived here) posted on January 21, 2026, he shows his middle finger.
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of Instagram.)
Caesars Palace can be seen in the background, confirming he is in Las Vegas. Lead Stories geolocated his position here (archived here) at 3475 Las Vegas Blvd South, at Harrah's Casino.
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of google.com/maps.)
A screenshot from this video (archived here) which was posted on TikTok on June 23, 2024, shows the unauthorized Minnie Mouse character is in Las Vegas.
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of TikTok.)
The Mirage Casino was closed in July 2024 to make way for construction of a new hotel, just weeks after this video was posted in June 2024. The Google Street View image of 3377 Las Vegas Boulevard (archived here) from January 2021 shows the location where the man was standing when the June 2024 video was recorded.
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of google.com/maps.)
Unlicensed street performers dressed as popular characters are common on the Las Vegas Strip, where they pose for photos and request tips from tourists.
