Aussie Influencer Apologises For Dressing Up As The Stingray That Killed Steve Irwin
The stingray that killed an Australian icon sits pretty high on the list of things that you shouldn’t dress up as for a costume party. But regardless, Aussie influencer Sophia Begg decided to do just that… and broadcast her questionable choice to her hundreds of thousands of followers.
Sophia (aka @sophadophaa_ on Instagram) posted a now-deleted video on TikTok of herself in a stingray costume, which could totally be cute and unoffensive. However, things got messy when a follower referenced the late Steve Irwin who was killed by a stingray in 2006.
“Steve Irwin could never,” one wrote on the photo. To this, Sophia replied “This is what this is for! I’m going to an Aussie dress-up party in a duo costume.”
“They’re going as Steve Irwin and I’m going as a stingray.”
In news that will be surprising to pretty much no one, the 17-year-old received a tonne of backlash over the disrespectful choice.
“Her partner is dressing as Steve Irwin. They’re literally joking about a devastating death” one user wrote, while another added “Obviously [she’s] never lost a parent so they wouldn’t understand the hurt of seeing it.”
After being bombarded with criticism on all of her social media platforms, Sophia posted a typical IG text apology to TikTok.
“Hi guys, I just wanted to jump on here to clear up some things,” she began the apology.
“I love Steve Irwin and would never want to cause disrespect to his family or legacy. He is an iconic Aussie and no offence was meant by my costume.”
“I have thought about and reflected on my costume and I will not be wearing it and apologise wholeheartedly to anyone who was offended by it. That was definitely not my intention. I apologise sincerely,” she concluded.
@notsophaadophaa♬ original sound – Notsophadophaa
While Sophia did post a public apology, she only published it to her backup TikTok account which has 101,000 followers rather than her main TikTok account which has 1.2 million followers. Just saying.