The family of William Chapman, the 24-year-old former child actor mauled to death by a tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, has called on people to stop sharing "deeply offensive media content" online, as criticism grows over social media posts by US President Donald Trump.
Mr Chapman jumped into the tiger enclosure at the park near Doncaster on Saturday, with witnesses urging him to "play dead". He was attacked by Altai, a five-year-old Amur tiger, and pronounced dead at the scene shortly after 1.30pm. He had filmed footage of himself approaching the animal, breathing heavily in the moments before the mauling.
Family statement and plea
In a statement, his family said he suffered from "significant mental illness over a number of years" and was consequently prescribed strong medication. They added: "The family are utterly devastated by their loss and are struggling to come to terms with what has happened."
The family has specifically asked for people not to share footage of the incident on social media. In a further statement, they said: "The publication and circulation of deeply offensive media content is causing them severe distress at an exceptionally vulnerable time. We ask people to stop doing this."
The family also said: "The family are hopeful that the relevant authorities will do their upmost to get to the bottom of why our amazing son did what he did. It will be for the coroner to decide what part this played in his death. We would ask everybody to respect that process."
Trump's social media posts
Mr Trump posted footage of the attack on his Truth Social platform, where he has 13 million followers, captioned "Don't ever mess with nature!". The clip shows the animal biting and clawing at Mr Chapman, though not the actual killing. The Mirror and other publications have not shared the video due to its insensitive nature.
He later posted an AI-generated video of himself wrestling with a tiger, with The Lion Sleeps Tonight by The Tokens playing in the background. In the clip, posted at around 4.15am UK time, Trump chases the tiger, tackles it, and ends up embracing it, with both smiling. The video appears to mimic Mr Chapman's pointing gesture from the original footage.
The posts have been heavily criticised. Carole Malone, speaking on Jeremy Vine on 5, said the AI video was "far more offensive" than the earlier post. She said: "It's just not funny. You shouldn't be doing that. The guy's got no filter. You don't joke about young men dying at the hands of tigers."
Piers Morgan responded to a post on X displaying the AI video, saying: "This is appallingly tasteless. Delete it, President Trump."
Downing Street said people should respect the views of Mr Chapman's family but would not directly comment on Mr Trump posting the videos online.
Investigation and inquest
South Yorkshire Police confirmed officers are preparing a file for the coroner. An inquest is due to be opened in Doncaster tomorrow morning, with only basic details such as Mr Chapman's name, age and provisional cause of death expected to be announced during the short public hearing, which will be adjourned for a later date.
The force said: "Officers have been in contact with William's family who have asked for privacy at what is an incredibly difficult time for them. We are continuing to support them." It added: "Doncaster City Council have an ongoing health and safety investigation following Saturday's incident."
Dr Campbell Murn, a lecturer in Conservation Science at the University of Reading and a former member of the government's expert committee for zoos, said that despite UK zoos having to follow set regulations for enclosure designs, incidents like Saturday's cannot be eliminated. He said: "There's an enormous amount of effort that goes into the securing of public safety for people who are visiting zoos, in addition to the weight that's given to animal welfare in those settings as well."
Dr Murn said he does not believe the incident was a result of a safety failure, but rather "it was not possible to get there before the visitor was injured and subsequently died". He added: "Even the most elaborate enclosure, if they really want to get in, they're going to find a way."
Yorkshire Wildlife Park remains closed today for the fifth day, with a message on its website stating the park is "working closely with the authorities". The Yorkshire Hive, which offers shopping, dining, a hotel and entertainment options, remains open.
