Pizza Rat A Hoax? Selfie Rat And ‘Zardulu’ Spark Rat Video Witch Hunt

In the wake of the success of the epic “Pizza Rat” video, which features a New York rat taking a massive slice of pizza with him down some public stairs, others may now be trying to duplicate Pizza Rat’s success, according to Gothamist columnist, John Del Signore.

However, these new rat videos allegedly don’t showcase rats in natural rat ways. Instead, they allegedly use trained rats in staged scenarios, thereby not capturing the behaviors of truly “wild” New York street rats. As a result, Del Signore is now even questioning the veracity of Pizza Rat himself.

Such assertions have rattled the cages of Pizza Rat video supporters and associates of Pizza Rat videographer and YouTube poster, Matt Little, according to the Huffington Post.

For most, Pizza Rat simply looks like a bold, tough, New York rat with a hankering for a tasty slice. Is training really required?

So when the Gothamist posted on Facebook, “Was Pizza Rat A Hoax? A trained rat and a mysterious woman named Zardulu are allegedly the masterminds of a ‘huge’ number of viral videos,” Pizza Rat witness and Matt Little supporter, Pat Baer, who was also with Little when he captured Pizza Rat on video dragging the pizza slice down the stairs, had some stern words for the non-believers and Pizza Rat conspiracy theorists.

“I am not a liar, and I am not part of some hoax or conspiracy. I have received no financial gain for pizza rat. I despise internet hoaxes, stunts, and pranks. The fact that Matt Little and I are part of the UCB community (New York’s Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre) makes this conspiracy look plausible. I hate that there are people out there who will read Gothamist or Jezebel and think I was part of some stunt or something.This is making me angry and I know that it shouldn’t. You can’t control what people think of you. But my online work is celebrating awesome and honest things on the internet. To be accused of this hurts me a lot.”

And perhaps Pizza Rat’s authenticity speaks for itself considering his “Pizza Rat” video continues to prove immensely entertaining and real for many, as evidenced by its going viral. “Pizza Rat” is currently pushing 9,000,000 views on YouTube.

Which may be why others are trying to ride the coattails of Pizza Rat’s success. But who are these rat-video interlopers that have brought Pizza Rat’s authenticity into question?

Well, for one, there’s now “Selfie Rat,” a video posted to YouTube that purportedly chronicles a rat climbing on to a guy that is sleeping in a New York subway station. Inexplicably, Selfie Rat then activates the guy’s phone and captures his Rat Selfie on the device before said guy awakes in a panic, tosses the rat off, and struggles to gather his phone before fleeing.

Really? “Selfie Rat” first began gathering attention after being featured on FOX 61 News, but now, with some questioning Selfie Rat’s nonchalant behavior after being discovered by sleeping guy, as well as the sleeping guy’s questionable acting skills, many feel that Selfie Rat’s putting the authenticity and intangible New York believability of Pizza Rat into question is unwarranted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CvWXG8gqEU

The catalyst that lit Pizza Rat’s authenticity ablaze, by acquainting him with Selfie Rat’s being allegedly bogus, is New York comic Eric Yearwood who says he was the sleeping man in the “Selfie Rat” video, confirming the production was staged

According to Yearwood, he was recruited by a “mysterious Brooklyn performance artist named ‘Zardulu,'” to make the Selfie Rat video come to life.

You be the judge to help get to the bottom of this issue: is Pizza Rat staged because Selfie Rat is a sham? Hmmm…

[Images and video via YouTube]