Is The Cinnamon Toast Crunch Shrimp Tails Guy Actually A Toxic Abuser?
It started as a funny and disgusting viral tweet. Then it got very, very dark.
@JensenKarp / Twitter Jensen Karp, aka Shrimp Tails Guy, has been the talk of the town on Twitter over the last few days, but it's not solely due to the sugar-covered shrimp tails, string, dental floss and possible rat feces he says found in his cereal box.
Now he's being accused of emotional abuse by former partners and creating a toxic work environment for his colleagues.
In an ironic twist after going viral for his tweet about finding shrimp tails in a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal and bizarre exchanges witth the Cinnamon Toast Crunch Twitter account in which he accused them of gaslighting, multiple people stepped forward to accuse Karp of dishonesty, workplace toxicity and emotional abuse.
Although Karp has since gone quiet on updates with the shrimp tails and the story of the alleged cereal surprise, ex-girlfriends and ex-coworkers have been publicly vocal about the man's possible toxic personality.
Who is Jensen Karp, the Shrimp Tails Guy, and what made him go viral in the first place?
The 41-year-old is a comedian, writer and producer who’s currently married to Danielle Fiscel, most famous for her role as Topanga on "Boy Meets World".
Before the viral Twitter saga regarding Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Karp was most known for his music. In his 20s, he went by “Hot Karl” on stage.
He took to Twitter on Monday, March 22, to show two shrimp tails he found in his cereal. Unsure of what exactly it was doing there, he sought out answers from General Mills.
The tweet went viral and Karp continued to post updates on his back-and-forth messaging with the official Twitter account of the cereal brand. According to Karp, he has been messaging them via direct messaging as well as email.
What has Karp been accused of on social media? Is it true?
The tone of the conversation about Shrimp Tails Guy changed on Wednesday, March 24, many people took to Twitter to accuse Karp of being an emotional abuser who possesses toxic traits that manifest in both relationships and workplace environments.
Melissa Stetten, an ex-girlfriend of Karp’s, did not hold back when tweeting about her experience with him.
“[H]e’s a manipulative gaslighting narcissistic ex-boyfriend who once told me he was surprised I hadn’t killed myself because my life was so worthless,” she wrote.
According to Stetten, she has received a plethora of direct messages from women whom she says have experienced the same, or similar behavior from Karp.
Although it is unclear the relationship that these other women had with him, whether it was romantic or professional, the responses to Stetten’s tweet are quite heavy.
One woman by the name of Rory Uphold responded to the tweet to say that she ended up in the hospital, and insinuated it was because of Karp.
She also responded to an article posted on Twitter from LA Times Entertainment about the shrimp tails story, saying that Karp was “the most abusive person I have ever been with."
A former colleague of Karp's, Britani Nichols, who worked with him on a TBS show called “Drop The Mic,” said her happiest moment working with him was their last day.
“He came into the room max 3 times the whole season. Never greeted us. When he wanted to speak to the head writer, he would yell her name from his office. The only solid memory I have of him in the room was our last day,” she wrote.
She went on to describe her work experience with him in a long series of tweets and how it left much to be desired.
Has Karp responded since women and ex-colleagues have spoken out?
Karp ended his Twitter updates regarding the Cinnamon Toast Crunch story on Wednesday morning. He announced on Twitter that although he will not be tweeting about it anymore, he is still communicating with General Mills behind the scenes.
So did Karp manufacture the story about the shrimp tails in the cereal? Did he lie to become a viral sensation like some people are alleging? Is the guy everyone's talking about actually a bad person?
We may not get the answers to those questions but we do know two things for sure. The first is that Cinnamon Toast Crunch is scrambling to find answers, as their integrity is on the line and the public reputation of Jensen Karp, Shrimp Tails Guy, is on the line.
Tomás Diniz Santos is a writer living in Orlando, Florida. He covers news, entertainment, and pop-culture topics.