Cinema audiences have been going wild over two words Jack Black said in the box-hit Minecraft movie.
Over its opening weekend (4 April), A Minecraft Movie blew it out of the park, pulling in an estimated $300 million (£233 million) globally. Despite some critics calling it the ‘worst movie’ of 2025, it’s now claimed the title for biggest opening weekend ever for a video game adaptation, overtaking The Super Mario Bros. Movie, according to The Guardian.
The story follows four misfits who get pulled into Minecraft’s Overworld through a mysterious portal and stars Jack Black, Jason Momoa, Wednesday’s Emma Myers, and The White Lotus star Jennifer Coolidge. But one scene in particular is driving fans completely wild. Clips have been circulating on TikTok showing packed movie theatres erupting in cheers, chaos and flying popcorn.
The reason?
In one scene, Black’s character comes face-to-face with a Minecraft chicken being ridden around a boxing ring. At which point, he yells: “Chicken Jockey!”
The clip was first teased in the official Warner Bros trailer that reached over 1.3 million views, so no wonder the trend is spreading like wildfire. On social media, Minecraft fans are roaring with applause while throwing popcorn everywhere in response to the two words.
For those unfamiliar with Minecraft, a chicken jockey is a rare enemy in the game that comes in the form of a baby zombie riding a chicken. According to a Minecraft-dedicated fandom page, these characters have less than a half-percent (0.4875 percent) chance of spawning, making their sight a big deal to players.
In response to the clips, people have been anything but quiet. “My theatre clapped every time Jack Black name dropped a Minecraft item that was in the trailers, and when he said Chicken Jockey I s*** you not the entire row in front of me gave a standing ovation,” one person shared.
Over on Reddit, one user in a teachers’ forum wrote: “My condolences to everyone hearing “chicken jockey.”” while someone else agreed: “Exactly same happened when i was watching”.
But not everyone is following the hype – especially movie theatre staff. Cinemas across the UK and US, including branches of Cineworld and REEL, have now issued warnings to avoid such ‘disruptive behaviour’ at the screenings. “Disruptive behaviour, including taking part in TikTok trends, before, during, or after a screening will not be tolerated,” a cinema spokesperson said. “Anyone causing disruption will be asked to leave, and where necessary, the police will be called.”
Featured Image Credit: Karwai Tang / Contributor via Getty
Cinema issues urgent warning to anyone going to see the Minecraft movie in theatres
A viral trend has caused chaos
A UK cinema has issued a warning to anyone planning to see the highly-anticipated Minecraft movie after a viral TikTok trend.
Despite critics already calling it the ‘worst movie’ of the year, A Minecraft Movie has smashed the box office, raking in an estimated $300 million (£233 million) globally on its opening weekend alone. It’s now on track to become the best selling video game movie of all time alongside Nintendo‘s The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
The comical video game adaptation sees stars Jack Black and Jason Momoa pulled through a portal into the blocky world of Minecraft.
But while it’s proving to be a crowd-pleaser, especially for those who grew up with the game, things have gotten out of hand in cinemas. Videos on social media show food and popcorn being thrown across the audience, with people shouting, swearing and jumping out of their seats.
The video game adaptation sees Jack Black and Jason Momoa pulled into the famous Minecraft world (Warner Bros.)
In one US theatre, the situation got so rowdy that police had to be called in to break it up. Now, the REEL cinema chain is warning that any customers who misbehave will be removed from the cinema, with Cineworld branches in Oxfordshire and Glasgow doing the same.
“To ensure everyone has the best possible cinema experience, we’re increasing our monitoring of screens during performances,” a spokesperson told the Daily Echo.
“Disruptive behaviour, including taking part in TikTok trends, before, during, or after a screening will not be tolerated.”
They added: “Anyone causing disruption will be asked to leave, and where necessary, the police will be called.”
As seen in the trailer, one scene that seems to make the audience go wild is when Black encounters a Minecraft chicken being ridden around a boxing ring by another character, to which Black yells, “Chicken Jockey”.
TikToks show popcorn being thrown around the cinema (Flashpop / Getty)
Multiple clips online show people shouting the line back, cheering and clapping in the theatre when the scene occurs.
“Throughout the whole film, as new characters are introduced, there’s this cheer of recognition,” one father told the BBC.
“My theatre clapped every time Jack Black name dropped a Minecraft item that was in the trailers, and when he said Chicken Jockey I s*** you not the entire row in front of me gave a standing ovation,” one person shared.
“Just got back from watching the movie myself, can confirm everyone in the theatre collectively yelled ‘CHICKEN JOCKEY’ during that moment and it was glorious ngl,” wrote another.
Meanwhile, cinema employees have been using TikTok to urge viewers not to repeat the behaviour. “I’m a theatre employee: by throwing water, popcorn and all that onto people (which many have been doing) yall are making our jobs harder,” commented one user.