UPDATE: Jimmy got us again -- 'Wolf in my hall' a Kimmel hoax

Published Feb. 20, 2014 3:41 p.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

foxsports

UPDATE: Jimmy got us again.

Turns out "Wolf in my hall" was just a hoax put together by Kimmel and Kate Hansen, a member of the US Olympic luge team. The two confirmed it Thursday during Kimmel's late-night show, with an extended version of the viral video in which Kimmel comes down the hall on skis asking "Have you seen my wolf?"

Tricking us wasn't so easy, though. Kimmel had Hansen send him a photo of her dorm hallway and he had it recreated on his set.

Oh, and the wolf?

A real Timber Wolf mix named Rugby, not a Husky as many thought.

The IOC said it was no big deal, but apparently the stunt got Hansen in a little hot water back in Sochi.

“Honestly, there was a little more backlash than I thought there’d be,” Hansen said via Skype, adding: “Security started freaking out, because technically there was a breach. You know, athlete safety. It kind of went a little crazy over here.”

Perhaps we can call off the dogs for now.

It could be the wolf in the Sochi hotel was a Jimmy Kimmel-staged stunt.

The Internet was on hair-raising alert when Olympic luger Kate Hansen tweeted this video on Wednesday night, showing what appeared to be a wolf skulking around a Sochi hotel hallway. 

"Epic #Sochifail: Wolf in my hall," the YouTube video read, referring to the many issues surrounding the Sochi Games. "I'm pretty sure this is a wolf wandering my hall in Sochi."

But now news reports are claiming the video was a hoax, orchestrated by the late-night prank sultan Jimmy Kimmel himself. 

USA Luge publicist Sandy Caligiore apparently confirmed the prank to "Inside Edition" in an e-mail on Thursday, saying Hansen was in on the stunt and that she'll appear on Kimmel's late-night talk show Thursday night. 

But since then, all parties are mum on the subject, and the New York Daily News' call to Caligiore for comment has yet to be returned. 

Though Kimmel just posted this on his Twitter feed. 

If this video does turn out to be a viral hoax, it wouldn't be the first time Kimmel's pulled a fast one on an unsuspecting Internet audience. 

Last September, he admitted to being the mastermind behind the viral video "Worst Twerk Fail EVER - Girl Catches Fire," which has amassed more than 15 million views. 

"Epic #Sochifail: Wolf in my hall" is at just over a million views. And counting. 

share