How The White House Turned Viral Gorilla Debate About Immigration

The internet is abuzz with a peculiar question: could 100 unarmed men take down a single adult male gorilla in a fight? The debate was sparked by X user Michael Sherrills on April 24, and it has since snowballed into a full-blown phenomenon, captivating the attention of celebrities and politicians alike.

YouTube star MrBeast poked fun at the idea, posting a fake thumbnail titled "100 Men vs. a Gorilla" and jokingly asking for volunteers. Elon Musk said: "Sure, what's the worst that could happen?"

Even the White House got in on the action, using the meme to make a pointed commentary on immigration. Their post featured a photo of immigrants boarding a plane with an image of President Donald Trump, captioned: "100 men vs 1 gorilla is still up for debate. Meanwhile, 142,000+ illegal alien criminals went up against 1 President Trump - They all got deported."

100 men vs 1 gorilla is still up for debate.

Meanwhile, 142,000+ illegal alien criminals went up against 1 President Trump —

They all got deported. 🤭 pic.twitter.com/2LaXNC3IEG

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 1, 2025

The White House's post seemed to endorse Trump's hardline immigration record. According to ICE, during Trump's initial 100 days in office, 66,463 people were detained without proper documentation, and 65,682 were deported.

Michael Sherrills, the man behind the original question, expressed surprise at the frenzy his query sparked and he told NBC, "The thing people love the most is things that probably won't ever happen, because you can debate about it," he said. "It's like tasting a dream, you know what I'm saying? And I think people love to feel it out." Sherrills remains confident that 100 men could defeat a gorilla, but with some caveats. "I can do it, but I got to be in the last batch, and I have to be able to pick the other 99 people," he said. "We're gonna have to call a couple of wrestlers, some football players probably."