Halloween is still months away, but a 5-year-old boy wearing an iconic scary costume has been terrorizing his Alabama neighborhood. One woman, who almost had a heart attack upon seeing him, captured his photo, which quickly went viral.
Kendra Walden said she was working on a house remodeling in the area when she spotted the boy, fully dressed as a "Chucky" doll, in the street. She was with some of her staff in the car, and they were all pretty scared upon seeing him in his Chucky mask and jumper costume.
Speaking with Today, Walden said they were not sure what to make of the figure at first, but as they got closer and closer, they realized it was Chucky, the demonic doll in the "Child's Play" horror film franchise in the 1980s.
They turned the car around because Walden wanted to take a photo. She said that her brother, who serves in the Marine, would have died on the spot if he had seen the boy in person.
"His biggest fear in the entire world is Chucky," she said.
Who is the Little Terror?
Walden uploaded the photo of Chucky on Facebook and wrote, as a joke in the caption, for the boy's parents to get their child off the street because he gave them such a fright. The post has since been shared 109,000 times and gained more than 50,000 reactions and 16,000 comments.
A week later, Walden received a comment from the boy's mom, Britnee Reed, who fessed up and said it was her son, Jackson Reed. She was working when she found out about the viral photo. It was shared with her by a co-worker. While she didn't believe it at first, she knew in her heart that it was something her son would do.
The mom then called home from work to speak with Jackson and was told by his grandmother that the boy was by the porch again, wearing some costume and waiting to scare people. Apparently, Jackson dressed up as Chucky for last year's Halloween and hasn't given up the costume since then. The mother said that her 5-year-old enjoys costumes and makes a spectacle of parading them on their street.
Britnee said that Jackson and his older brother, Mason, are thrilled about his internet fame.
"Tell them I was a good Chucky," the boy said to his mother while she was being interviewed on Fox 59. "And make sure you send my grandma a copy of the pictures, too."
Other people were not amused
Despite the mostly positive reactions, Walden said that the viral photo also attracted criticism, especially for the child and his mother. Some netizens wondered why the 5-year-old was walking and crossing the street alone.
Walden defended the boy and said that Jackson was careful to look both ways before crossing a residential street. She also commended Britnee for allowing her son to have fun outside the house.
Britnee said she read the negative comments but was mostly pleased that people saw how her 5-year-old was only trying to enjoy. Besides, his grandmother is by the porch, closely watching him when he's playing outside.
