Do not attempt to adjust your phone's setting, for the next five minutes or so, you will be in The Mandela Effect universe. You know, that alternate universe where Nelson Mandela died in prison in the '80s, your favorite childhood book series was the The Berenstein Bears, and Sinbad made an amazing genie movie called Shazaam. As reported by Entertainment Weekly, just for April Fool's Day, Sinbad made a fake Shazaam movie, and, you guys, it almost looks too real.
For the unfamiliar, a group of Reddit users are certain Sinbad made a genie movie called Shazaam in the '90s. The movie never existed, and many believe confused '90s kids are simply thinking of Shaq's genie movie Kazaam. Others believe the Sinbad movie does exist — in an alternate universe. Whatever explanation you have for the shared false memory, you are going to love the two minutes of "lost" footage CollegeHumor released featuring Sinbad in full Shazaam mode.
The clip begins with two children, Rachael and James, searching for an item from their mother's past that will allow them to hold onto her memory now that she's gone. What they find is a magic lamp containing Shazaam, a mischievous genie, who upon discovering the kids' mom's name is Tina, realizes he has been in the lamp a long time. "She has kids now?" he asks. "I thought we had something going on, me and your mother."
Sinbad is way too convincing in the role. In fact, when CollegeHumor released the "videotape" they cheekily claim to have found at an abandoned Blockbuster, some fans of the fake movie thought someone had at long last found a copy of Shazaam, and began tweeting the comedian with "proof" that the movie he denied ever existed was real after all.
Everything from the production value to the spliced in commercials are so well done, you have to forgive true Shazaam believers for getting their hopes up. Both Sinbad and CollegeHumor deserve major props for pulling off a truly legendary April Fool's Day prank — and if you find yourself wishing you could watch the rest of the fake film, know you are not alone.
It's not just the authentic '90s kid movie feel or the use of the Reddit thread for inspiration for the two-minute clip that should be lauded. The video is loaded with easter eggs for those who have read up on The Mandela Effect. If I didn't know better I would say the clip drifted over from the alternate timeline.
From little James pulling out a Curious George book where the famous monkey has a tail on the cover, to the kids falling into a stack of newspapers reporting the death of Mandela, the clip demands to be rewatched just so you can catch all of the inside jokes. There's also a reference to The Berenstain Bears, a shoutout to those who believe KitKat used to have a hyphen, and even a blink and you'll miss it lost Froot Loops commercial revealing the cereal was once known as "Fruit Loops" after all. (There's another commercial featuring Carmen Sandiego in a yellow coat instead of her famed red one.)
Just accept that there will never be another April Fool's Day prank as epic as this one. Shazaam is the gift that just keeps on giving — even though it stubbornly continues to not exist. At least not in this universe.
