Could You Kill A Kitten? - Derren Brown

#DerrenBrown #Illusionist

By using negative suggestion, can Derren Brown convince someone to kill a kitten?

[Kletskous]

I would never push that button for real

[bensmith]

No ones mentioned his constant pen clicking- obviously a subtle idea of pushing something down

[MrZoso]

Him: I'll give you 500 pounds
Me: *can I have the kitten*

[sarahsnyder]

Being alone in a room with him on his show would be so scary.

[DeadlyVRU]

0:20 "when you press this button, it electrocutes the kitten". notice he says "WHEN you press this button", not "if". just 20 seconds in he's already putting ideas into her head about pressing it.

and at 0:35: "your job is to try not to press the button." the word "try" implies probable failure and that the default outcome is pressing it.

EDIT: holy cow it gets worse. 0:46: "if you don't... *slaps table* kill the kitten." this is a pattern interrupt followed by an embedded command, both techniques from NLP. slapping the table for no apparent reason induces confusion and suggestibility in her, which he follows up with the words "kill the kitten". because those words are so detached from the beginning of the sentence by the pause and the table hit it's interpreted as a direct command by the subconscious.

[bee]

I just realized that she has a cat, right?
Imagine her going home and her cat just sitting like "I saw what you did" 🤣

[akira-nxvo]

“ill leave u with kitty.”

me: runs out with cat

[shayneedwards]

These contestants must go through some pre-screening process to show they're already mentally warped before coming on this show.

[LolLol-ekzm]

I’d bloody smash the crate open and run with the kitten

[MattTehMeme]

I can play with a cat for 2 minutes without brutally murdering it

[spectreskeptic]

Here's an idea I didn't see mentioned in the comments. Perhaps, he convinced her that the cat would be electrocuted if she did not push the button. All of the distractions served to confuse her and by the time she's left alone she can't remember if the button kills the cat or prevents it from being killed. Countdowns are usually associated with something imminent and negative. In the final moments she's forced to make a decision about what she thought she heard. It's hard to pay attention when the stakes are high. A follow-up interview would have been interesting.

[mermaidenby]

I would've just opened the box, taken the kitten and left, never leave me alone with a cat cause you will never see it again, i WILL take it

[annika_abitbol]

OMG I WOULD DIE LOOKING AT THAT CUTE BALL IF FLUFF

[alx]

I thought the kitten died and I automatically cried im so glad it didnt

[mli]

I feel like this would only work on a specific type of person susceptible to mind tricks like this. If I was in this situation I would just "well ok, I'll take this chair, drink my soda and chill for the 5 minutes"

[weavemegan]

I would never push the button even if I'm a dog person

[ItsKan]

(1) Give her squash instead of tea to make her feel like the childish one
(2) Make her draw something like a child would
(3) Make her remember being a child, and suggest being naughty and mischievous
(4) Tell her that feeling is good, and she'll comply.
(5) Indulge that feeling. She's now in a childlike state
(6) Add pressure on her by adding the timer
(7) Let her be alone with the cat
(8) Her curiosity gets the better of her
(9) Jackpot..?

[artimex]

WTF? How did he even "convince" her?

[DemitriosX]

If I were on the show:

Derren: "Remember, don't kill the kitten."
Me: "OK."
**WALKING OUT OF THE ROOM 5 MINUTES LATER WITH 500 POUNDS AND A NEW KITTEN**: "The fuck was that weirdos problem? "

[dkos]

I don't care how stressful that situation would be, I would never press that button.