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Madison Burgess
Videos are popping up on social media of people burning their Labubu dolls - and there’s a very disturbing reason why.
The frenzy has shown no signs of dying out as more and more people are trying to get their hands on the furry collectible figures.
For those who have been living under a rock and are unfamiliar with the trend, they are plush toys created by Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung.
They come in a ‘blind box’ format, which means you don’t know which colour or style you’re going to get until you open it up.
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And they don’t come cheap either, retailing for around £17.50 in the UK at face value on PopMart, and much more if you want to bag one from a reseller due to them being constantly sold out.
But, as is usually the case with things that become insanely popular, Labubus also have their critics - and some of them are quite extreme.
The dolls have been plagued with wild conspiracy theories online and have even been accused of having ‘demonic energy’ and compared to a demon from ancient Mesopotamian mythology known as ‘Pazuzu’.
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The theory has gone so far that some Christians even began urging people to get rid of the dolls, and now, in a step further, people are burning them.
Pointing out the phenomenon, one user wrote on Reddit: “There is now a Labubu satanic panic on TikTok and people are burning their Labubus and making up conspiracy theories.”
They also reshared a clip from TikTok user @jessicavibezx who filmed themselves throwing theirs a fire and burning it to a crisp.
Shocked, they wrote in the thread: “These people stupid af”.
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Other users joked in the replies: “Some people didn’t live through furby and it shows” and “Or had a grandmother who collected Cabbage patch dolls. 100% demonic.”
“The satanic panic never went away it just constantly rebrands. I'm so tired,” agreed another user.”
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Someone else pointed out that at one point people ‘were convinced furbies were both satanic and also tools from the government to spy on us. Time is a circle.’
“I remember when Furbies were satanic too lmao, and pokemon cards, and hell just about everything is satanic,” joked another Redditor.
Meanwhile, another social media user thinks it’s all just a big and extravagant marketing ploy.
They wrote: “I feel like just yesterday I saw someone on YouTube showing off their supposed collection of these things, then I saw a video where someone was dipping them in gold paint or something, now supposedly burning them. I think this all is just an attempt at viral marketing?”
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And the panic seems to be spilling into real life away from the internet, as another Reddit user explained a scary situation they were faced with while shopping.
They penned: "Today I went to a store with my Labubu on my bag and as I was checking out, one of the workers came up to me and said 'you know those things are really cute, but if you knew what they stood for you’ll no longer want it' and then followed by telling me it was a demon."
They continued: "I’ve seen discourse on TikTok about Labubus being demonic but never thought people took that serious enough to approach strangers. Just wanted to share because I thought it was weird and was wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience?"
However, it’s of course important to note that all of this is just wild theories and the designer has never linked Labubus to anything demonic whatsoever.
Instead, he’s cited his inspirations as the whimsical folklore and Nordic fairy tales that he grew up with.
Tyla has previously contacted PopMart and creator Kasing Lung about the 'demon' rumours.