Erling Haaland’s Viral Reflection Video Is AI-Generated - Yahoo

A viral video circulating on social media appeared to show professional footballer Erling Haaland becoming momentarily frightened by his own reflection while eating at a restaurant. Fact-checking efforts have since confirmed the footage is AI-generated, utilizing manipulated content rather than an authentic recording of the athlete.

What happened

The video depicts Haaland eating food when he turns toward a mirror and reacts with surprise, accompanied by the laughter of the person recording. After the clip gained significant traction and numerous humorous reactions from netizens, users on X (formerly Twitter) provided context revealing the fabrication. Investigation confirmed that the clip was produced using material from an existing video originally uploaded to TikTok by content creator Jin Long Qiu.

In the original source material, Qiu, who is known for playing a mechanic character, is shown with a dirtied face and hands. The AI-generated version utilized face-swapping and attire modification to replace the original subject with Erling Haaland. Unlike the viral social media reception to the doctored clip, viewers of the original content generally did not find the footage amusing. As of the time of reporting, Erling Haaland has not issued a personal reaction to the deepfake. The incident occurred amidst heightened public attention regarding Haaland’s upcoming film project, ViQueens, which recently received a sneak peek at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival.