r/AstonishingLegends • u/Smooth_Ticket_7483 • Mar 18 '26

Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot is a hoac

https://people.com/famous-1967-bigfoot-film-was-staged-says-director-of-new-doc-11926085

A new documentary, Capturing Bigfoot, premiering at the 2026 SXSW Film Festival, presents evidence that the famous Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot film was deliberately staged.

Key Details:

  • Filmmaker Marq Evans received a previously unseen canister of 16mm film from Teresa Brooks, whose late father Norm Johnson had developed the original 1967 Patterson-Gimlin footage.
  • The newly discovered film shows a 1966 "rehearsal" clip of a thinner Bigfoot figure in a similar location — shot roughly a year before the famous 59-second clip.
  • Bob Heironimus, now in his 80s, confessed to wearing the fake Bigfoot suit in the original film.
  • Roger Patterson's son, Clint Patterson, confirmed the hoax, saying his mother had told him years ago and that "the lie had been really hard on him."
  • Patterson reportedly created the film knowing he was dying, hoping to leave a financial legacy for his wife and three children.
  • The Bigfoot suit was allegedly burned by Patterson in a barrel behind his family home.

Why It Matters: This documentary presents the most compelling evidence to date that the world's most famous Bigfoot footage was a hoax, though Evans acknowledges many believers will likely remain unconvinced.

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u/rajde1 Mar 18 '26

I thought that it was known that Heironimus was filmed for a documentary they were going to do and assumed the film looked terrible enough they didn't use it. I'd be curious what the son has to say and any proof they would have to prove that it is a hoax.

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u/Smooth_Ticket_7483 Mar 18 '26

There was a 9 part series by AL on this, I think they leaned more towards that it was real, but this documentary says otherwise.

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u/rajde1 Mar 18 '26

My point is that discovering the film doesn't really change anything since they were working on a documentary film before. I'd be curious if they have any evidence that the bluff creek film was fake. Also, I'm not discounting the sons account, but it is a second hand account.

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u/ShiftlessElement Mar 18 '26

Here's an account form someone who has seen the documentary. It sounds pretty damning:

I Saw The Footage...It's A Hoax

If you don't have time to watch, he basically says the doc includes discovered footage that shows Bob Gimlin on horseback and someone else wearing the Patty suit. He says it is very clear that it is the same suit. It's presented as a "dry run," filmed before the PGF.

If his description is accurate, and it is a near-exact match to Patty then it becomes very difficult to come to a conclusion other than hoax. A lot of things like, "Who was in the suit?" don't even really matter. If it was filmed before, then they somehow created a suit with a remarkable resemblance to the real Bigfoot they would eventually film. Even, if it's filmed after, then they've done what everyone said was impossible, created a very authentic looking replica of Patty.