Podcaster Theo Von and The Pokémon Company probably don’t have a lot in common. But one thing they can apparently agree on is that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) should probably stop using them to promote deportation campaigns.
The DHS posted a montage of ICE raids to X on Monday accompanied by the original Pokémon theme song and the caption “Gotta Catch ‘Em All.” The clip also features images from the anime and text overlays using a sort of Temu version of the Pokémon font. A day later, the agency posted a video featuring a viral clip of Theo Von where he stares into the camera and says “heard you got deported, dude… bye,” then tacked on stats about how many people had been deported so far under President Donald Trump.
Both The Pokémon Company and Theo Von objected to DHS using them to promote ICE raids. Von quickly took to X, saying, “Yooo DHS i didnt approve to be used in this. I know you know my address so send a check. And please take this down and please keep me out of your ‘banger’ deportation videos.”
The statement from The Pokémon Company was, unsurprisingly, a little more diplomatic. “Our company was not involved in the creation or distribution of this content, and permission was not granted for the use of our intellectual property,” the company told the Daily Beast. Fans have taken to social media to urge The Pokémon Company and Nintendo to sue, but at least one legal expert sees that as unlikely — despite the companies’ notoriously litigious nature. The Pokémon Company’s ex-legal chief Don McGowan told IGN that “This will blow over in a couple of days and they’ll be happy to let it.”
The post featuring Theo Von has since been removed, suggesting that DHS is perhaps a little wary of angering the podcaster’s fan base. The Pokémon clip remains, however, and the Customs and Border Patrol X account even replied with a GIF of Detective Pikachu under the caption “Border Patrol’s newest recruit.”
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