Creatures, Myths & Legends

Despite Patterson footage drama, Bigfoot seems to be everywhere

By T.K. Randall
April 26, 2026 ·  23 comments

Image: AI-generated (Bing AI / Dall-E 3) Back in March, we reported on a new documentary by filmmaker Marq Evans that claimed to have indisputably exposed the infamous Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot footage as an "incredible hoax".

Entitled Capturing Bigfoot, the documentary includes previously unseen footage to help make the case that the creature filmed that day in 1967 was little more than a person in a costume.

While you'll need to watch the documentary to get the full story, the new footage essentially shows a "trial run" of the scene in the original clip, thus proving once and for all that it had been staged.

The reaction to this revelation has been considerable, but while the documentary may have cast some serious doubts on the creature's existence, Bigfoot as a cultural icon seems to be alive and well.This year has seen a bumper crop of Bigfoot-related products and events ranging from festivals, films and video games to the rather bizarre new Broadway production - Bigfoot! A New Musical.

There have also been multiple new sightings from across the United States.

In other words, despite the footage being exposed as a hoax, the Bigfoot phenomenon itself seems to be going from strength to strength.

Much like the Loch Ness Monster, it doesn't matter either way if the creature is real, it has grown to become something more - a cultural icon that is unlikely to ever go away.


Source: npr.org | Comments (23)

Tags: Bigfoot