Tung Tung Tung Sahur has arrived in Fortnite. But where did he come from?

I'm too old for Italian brainrot, but since I spend more of my free time than healthy scrolling through TikTok, I know my Bombardiro Crocodilos from my Chimpanzee Bananinis. You might even say I'm hip and cool, dabbing at strangers on the street while struggling not to scream '67' whenever both numbers are mentioned around me.

Straddling the Zoomer/Millennial divide is not easy as I use random internet nonsense to distract myself from the fact that I will never own a home. But once it starts bleeding into my favorite video games, I switch to professional mode and get serious. Last week, Epic Games added Tung Tung Tung Sahur and Ballerina Cappuccina avatars to Fortnite, allowing us to play as the Brainrot icon if we ate the dough.

But with characters originally dreamed up by generative AI and inspired by select pieces of folklore from various cultures, who even owns such a thing? And should taking advantage of them for profit be cause for concern?

Who is Tung Tung Tung Sahur and why is he in Fortnite?

Believe it or not, the founding of Italian BrainRot can be attributed to Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson. A series of internet videos created back in October 2023 show the famous actor uttering a bunch of nonsense phrases like “Tralalero tralala” and the like.

“smerdo pure nell'aldilà” which will eventually serve as the foundation of these strange viral organisms.

Determining exactly when AI-generated creatures started appearing online is not easy because there are so many conflicting sources. If the Daily Dot is correct, Tralero Tralala burst onto the scene first; A shark wearing trainers attracted over 7 million views before being removed for being too abusive.

More creatures would follow in its footsteps, a brief list of which I've included below:

Trallalero Trallala
Tung Tung Tung town
Bombardiro Crocodilo
Trippi Troppi
Ballerina Cappuccina
Chimpanzee Bananini
Lilly Larilla

It's silly humor that's hilarious for its sheer absurdity, with many designs combining real-life animals with airplanes, or caffeinated beverages brought to life with eyes, ears and samurai swords. I was totally confused when I first saw it, but despite that, it's quietly hilarious and has become a huge part of online culture. If it wasn't a big deal, it wouldn't make its way into Fortnite.

Italian BrainRoot has also infiltrated drop-shipping sites like Temu and has many bootleg merchandise created by sellers to take advantage of its popularity. If the kids like it, there's money to be made.

Many of these designs also have an obscure sense, such as how the song sung in videos featuring the Bombardino Crocodillo appears to be bombing civilians in Gaza. I imagine in most cases, however, these potentially damaging details go over the heads of young fans who consume them. They see something funny trending on TikTok and join in and be a part of the conversation and/or shout it out on the playground.

The Italian BrainRoot is the point of no return for Fortnite

A pair of the most popular Italian BrainRot designs coming to Fortnite were first teased as part of this new season's reveal trailer, and now Tung Tung Tung Sahur and Ballerina Cappuccina are available via the in-game store for a decent amount of V-Bucks.

But it's not like the usual licensed skins you usually see in live service games. As far as I know, no one owns these designs, considering they were conjured by AI before sharing them on TikTok to obscure their origins over time. Anyone can commercialize them for a quick profit, which seems like a nebulous thing to exploit a billion-dollar video game.

Don't get me wrong, it's clear that real artists put a lot of effort into bringing these skins to life, both Sahur and Cappuccina sporting different appearances that aren't just copying what you see on TikTok. They adapt them to the Fortnite aesthetic and make them feel right at home. But this creative process still acknowledges that the Italian BrainRoot was born from generative AI and then reverse-engineered by Epic Games for instant success.

The decision was made to ignore the fact that their viral creations weren't made by humans, as their place in popular culture was pronounced enough that Fortnite could soon take advantage of it. We often see this done with fictional characters and real-world musicians, but it feels like a weird point of not returning to the same level as Skibidy Toilet or Mr. Beast. Again though, at least they have real origins outside of the image generator.

I might like to laugh at Tung Tung Tung Sahur for pretending I'm hip and cool, but letting it take on a life of its own without acknowledging its real lack of cultural value beyond being a weird little creature in our world feels like a slippery slope. Fortnite has already taken advantage, and it's not just some random TikTok user trying to rack up a few million views, it's the biggest video game in the world. That can't be a good thing.