The viral fame that turned a private moment into a global tragedy

Cultures · Published 10 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In 2002, a 14-year-old boy in Quebec filmed himself mimicking Darth Maul. He never intended for the world to see. What followed was a digital wildfire of mockery, cyberbullying, and a legal battle that redefined the cost of internet fame.

The video, featuring Ghyslain Raza wielding a golf ball retriever as a lightsaber, was never meant for public consumption. Filmed in a high school studio in Trois-Ruties, Quebec, the tape was accidentally left in a basement. It was discovered by a schoolmate and eventually uploaded to the internet on April 14, 2003, under the title 'Jackass_starwars_funny.wmv.' Blogger Andy Baio is credited with giving the phenomenon the name 'Star Wars Kid.'

While the video gained massive traction—reaching an estimated 900 million views by late 2006—the impact on Raza was devastating. He faced intense physical and online harassment, including messages telling him to commit suicide. The bullying was so severe that Raza sought private tutoring to escape his school environment and required indefinite psychiatric care. In July 2003, his family filed a CA$250,000 lawsuit against four schoolmates' families, which was eventually settled out of court in April 2006.

Despite the trauma, the cultural footprint of the video is immense. It spawned parodies in shows like 'South Park' and 'The Office,' and even inspired a contest by Stephen Colbert. Years later, Raza reclaimed his narrative. After years of avoiding the spotlight to avoid being a 'circus act,' he emerged to use his experience to speak on the dangers of cyberbullying. A long-awaited apology from Baio regarding his part in distributing the clip took place in 2022, as shown in the film 'Star Wars Kid: The Rise of the Digital Shadows'.

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