30 Gender Reveals That Went Too Far

YouTube

In 2008, Jenna and Niko Karvunidis decided to do something creative for their child’s gender reveal. Rather than going the traditional route, they celebrated with a party that included a cute duck-shaped cake. And once it got cut, there was pink filling to indicate that it’s a girl.

Not surprisingly, it was a total success and Jenna wrote all about the gender reveal on her blog. But now, we imagine that if Jenna could turn back time, she never would have published it. Little did she know that this creative approach would spiral into a huge trend that’s gotten quite bizarre (and even dangerous in some cases).

Over a decade later, millions of people are going to great lengths to showcase their creativity with these gender reveal parties, from horror movie-themed videos to hair color gender reveals. However, others have included things like explosives, shotguns, and fireworks. And unfortunately, quite a few of these have gone horribly wrong. See all the real-life gender reveals that went too far. Warning: cringe factor is high!

This couple used a live alligator to reveal the gender

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Facebook /@melody.kliebert

Mike Kliebert and Rebecca Miller, who run Kliebert Gator Tours in Ponchatoula, Louisiana, actually own over 400 alligators on their 23-acre farm. So of course, when they got pregnant, they thought it would be fitting to include their oldest alligator, Sally. As for how they did the reveal, they had the 61-year-old reptile bite into a small watermelon that was filled with blue slime.

Not everyone found this cute. In fact, PETA’s vice president caught wind of the gender reveal and claimed that such sensitive animals aren’t meant to be exploited for entertainment. But Mike denied doing anything wrong. He said: “We wanted to incorporate the alligators, who are like family, into this big moment in our lives. I wouldn’t have had any other gator do the reveal. My grandpa hatched her in 1957.”

A car burst into flames in Australia

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7NEWS Sydney

In Meningie, South Australia, a group of family members started filming what they thought would be a pretty epic gender reveal. And at first, it seemed like things were going perfectly. As the car engine started, it emitted a bunch of pink smoke, revealing that it’s a girl. But soon after the car began to move, the bottom of it burst into flames. Thankfully, it went out rather quickly and no one was seriously hurt. Whew!

And so did another car

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CNN

As a warning for people who were thinking of trying this popular burnout trend, Australian police released footage from a 2018 gender reveal party in Queensland. The video showed a black vehicle emitting a ton of blue smoke as it drove off, revealing that the baby was a boy. But in a matter of seconds, the bottom of the car burst into flames and the smoke turned black, causing spectators to run to safety.

The 29-year-old driver was convicted of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and got fined $1,000. His license also got suspended for over six months. Whoops…

This car burst into flames too

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Facebook/@Breaking247

This particular stunt has become so common in Australia that there are probably enough incidents to fill up a book. In 2018, another family opted for this car-themed gender reveal in a quiet, suburban neighborhood, but it wasn’t exactly successful. Loved ones gathered close to the vehicle as it happened, but after it emitted clouds of blue smoke, it caught on fire and got the attention of several neighbors. Even despite the overwhelming smoke (and the possibility of getting charged by authorities), family and friends cheered after seeing that it’s a boy. So festive!

This gender reveal involved a creepy looking giant baby

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YouTube

We’re a bit creeped out by this, but at the same time, we honestly can’t stop laughing. After the family gathered and did a countdown, someone dressed in a giant baby suit with a blue bib ran out of a box and started doing the milly rock (we kid you not). To be fair, the moves were definitely entertaining, but we still can’t get over that weird costume. Or the fact that one relative started spanking the baby’s bottom when it got on all fours…

These gender reveal fireworks were a total fail

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YouTube

One couple fired pink fireworks in their own back yard, revealing that they’d be having a girl, but it went completely wrong. After setting the fireworks just a few feet away from their loved ones, one of them fell back onto the lawn and caused a bunch of chaos. In the recorded video, people could be seen running everywhere, but thankfully, the worst that people suffered were minor burns. Talk about a close call.

A gender reveal plane actually crashed

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NBC

In Texas, a couple used a crop-dusting plane for their gender reveal, which dropped over 350 gallons of pink water while flying across the sky in plain view. However, just moments after the exciting reveal, the plane crashed. According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the plane “got too slow, aerodynamically stalled, impacted terrain.” And while it was only designed for only one person, it was actually carrying two people. Miraculously, no one was seriously injured.

The Kreimeyers inadvertently created a pipe bomb that killed someone

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NBC

In Knoxville, Iowa, the Kreimeyer family experimented with explosives so they could record a huge gender reveal for social media. However, according to authorities, the had “inadvertently” created a pipe bomb and debris from the explosion instantly killed 56-year-old grandmother, Pamela Kreimeyer, during the party. The family intended to use colored powder for the reveal, but instead, they used gun powder and metal tubing to set it up. So heartbreaking and unfortunate.

Only a day later, another gender reveal explosion caused tremors

gender reveal
KCCI

This gender reveal explosion in Iowa wound up shaking homes that were more than two miles away.

According to the Waukee Fire Department, someone used a Tannerite gender reveal boom box kit and shot at it with a rifle, which was actually legal. Several residents felt the tremors, including John Volk. He said: “I ran out the back trying to figure it out. I looked at my neighbor’s yard. Everyone behind me looked like they were intact. My wife and I just stared at each other, and she was like, ‘What was that?'” Fortunately, this gender reveal didn’t lead to any serious injuries.

This couple used a catfish

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Facebook/@shelby.leaming

Shelby Leaming and Colt Moore’s gender reveal turned into a little wrestling match with a huge catfish and we’ve got a lot of questions. In the recorded video, Colt can be seen catching the flathead catfish with his bare hands and pulling it above the surface. Then, he and his friends work together to pull a pink tag out of the fish’s mouth. And Shelby looks thrilled that it’s a girl! But how long did it take those guys to get the tag in there? And how did they do it?!

A firefighter dyed a ton of water for his gender reveal

gender reveal
CBS

Most would say that this was a pretty creative idea, especially since the father is a fire fighter. Travis Yust, who works at the Batson Volunteer Fire Department in Texas, took his firetruck and revealed his baby’s gender by putting blue dye in the water hose. Some might say it’s a huge waste of water, and drenching all that grass with so much dye is… kind of a lot. But even so, we’ll give him some credit for the creativity and thought that went into it.

This dad got hit in the groin

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YouTube/@ViralHog

It’s impossible to watch this unfold without cringing a little. As the parents-to-be stood outdoors on a deck, they held air cannons that would reveal the gender of their baby. While the mom struggled to get hers to work, the dad’s air cannon worked perfectly… except the end of the cannon shot back at his groin (ouch). While the blue smoke came out successfully, he doubled over and the crowd giggled. A relative soon shared the entire thing on YouTube and hilariously named it “Gender Reveal May Be For Only One Child.” Haha!

An Hippo was used in this gender reveal

gender reveal
YouTube

Perhaps this Texas couple was inspired by Mike and Rebecca’s alligator-themed reveal. They thought that it would be a cool idea to throw a Jell-O-filled watermelon into a hippo’s mouth. When the hippo bit down on it, blue jello gushed out.

Not surprisingly, tons of people on social media criticized the couple for feeding the animal food dye, but according to the Capital of Texas Zoo in Cedar Creek, it was actually perfectly safe. Workers there even helped the family plan the whole thing.

A Nebraska couple set off an explosion that scared people three miles away

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NBC

Ashley and Jon Sterkel went above and beyond to announce that their unborn child was a boy. They used a rifle to set off an exploding target, which emitted blue smoke, but that one explosion caused several residents over three miles away to call the Scotts Bluff County Sheriff’s Office. Some actually mistook it for a house exploding or a car engine blowing out, but footage of the incident, which has since been deleted, actually shows the blue smoke from the blast.

When Jon caught wind of all the reports, he shared an apology on Facebook and said: “I would like to apologize for all of the confusion. This was just our way of announcing what gender our baby was.” After an investigation was done, Jon was charged with misdemeanor for illegally setting off an explosive without a state permit.

This couple took their reveal to new heights (literally)

gender reveals
YouTube

And the award for most outlandish gender reveal ever goes to… Lance Patrick and his girlfriend Ashley! In September of 2017, the pair announced the gender of their child by sending an actual weather-balloon to the stratosphere, outdoing pretty much every other gender reveal that’s been done. The balloon, which contained a stuffed monkey in a spacesuit and GoPro cameras, rose to an altitude of 20.4 miles. And after it popped, a parachute opened up to reveal the baby’s gender (it’s a boy) and name (Tesla Curtis). If you’re finding any of this hard to believe, you can watch the entire thing for yourself here.

Oscar and Kyra used a giant human-shaped piñata

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YouTube

This gender reveal is basically the definition of extra, but we’ll at least give the couple credit for thinking outside the box and not inadvertently killing anyone with their gone-too-far gender reveal. On the day of the big reveal, Kyra and her loved ones were met with huge piñata of herself. Oscar then recreated an actual birth by popping out of the pregnant belly in a bib and diaper, spraying pink confetti to announce that it’s a girl. Meanwhile, the kids didn’t seem as impressed and even started to back away. Oh boy…

This couple’s smoke bomb totally malfunctioned

gender reveal
Twitter/@Lexii913

Smoke bombs are supposed to release a stream of colored smoke after someone lights it, but in this case, things went south fast. The video shows a couple waiting excitedly after the father-to-be lights the smoke bomb on the ground. But after a few moments, it starts shooting off pink sparks and emitting gray smoke, startling the entire crowd. The dad got so frustrated that he kicked the smoke bomb away, which continued to malfunction and emit sparks. But um.. At least they know that it’s a girl?

There was an actual wrestling match with pink versus blue

gender reveal
Twitter/@1hungrymartian

For their gender reveal, this couple decided to incorporate a wrestling match between two guys. In the recorded video, after the announcer reveals that it will be the “Pink Panther” versus Blue, two half-naked guys in pink and blue masks run out of a box and start tackling one another in front of the crowd. Meanwhile, a referee enters the scene to oversee the whole thing and the announcer claims that the winning color will be the gender.

After the fighters went at it for a whole minute, blue turned out to be the winner. Anyone else feel like this method was a tad problematic?

This gender reveal included over a dozen cars

gender reveal
Twitter/@_LeslyAnaya

Over the past few years, there have been more burnout disaster stories than we can count. Still, that didn’t keep this bold couple from doing the exact same thing with over a dozen cars. All at once. The parents-to-be stood in a driveway with their loved ones and got to see the line-up of cars emit bright pink smoke on cue. And on top of that, someone drove a pink four-wheeled slingshot past the line of cars. To call this “risky” truly feels like an understatement, but thankfully, nothing went wrong.

This couple did a motorcycle burnout

gender reveal
YouTube

Motorcycle stunts are just as popular as car burnouts, though many might assume that it’s not as dangerous because they don’t lead to as many accidents. Even so, considering the harmful gases and the risk of getting hurt, we’d say that it’s still up there. One couple used a Yamaha R6 with a shinko smoke bomb tire to do their gender reveal burnout and thankfully, it was a complete success (whew!). The happy couple and their family discovered that it’s a boy.

A father broke his ankle with his gender reveal gone too far

gender reveals
YouTube

In Somerset, New Jersey, Chris Ojeda and his entire family were celebrating the gender reveal for his second child. The plan seemed simple enough: Kick the football and the color of the powder will reveal if it’s a girl or a boy. But while the reveal was successful, this dad unfortunately suffered an injury and broke his ankle after kicking the ball. He had to be taken to the hospital, but that’s not even the saddest part. It turns out Chris was also celebrating his birthday and Father’s Day when it all happened. Such awful timing.

A gender reveal party at Applebee’s went horribly wrong

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Fox 8

Perhaps this is all the proof we need that having gender reveal parties at crowded restaurants isn’t the best idea. Although in this case, the guests were incredibly rude and inconsiderate. One couple decided to celebrate their gender reveal at an Applebee’s location in Boardman, Ohio. The party of about 20 originally planned to use confetti poppers inside the restaurant, but the manager asked them to do it outside to avoid disturbing other customers.

They took the festivities outside and made a mess of the sidewalk. But when they were asked to clean it up, a fight broke out between the restaurant staff and the partygoers. It was also reported that the group didn’t pay their bill. Smh.

This burnout could’ve led to a major disaster

gender reveal
YouTube

In 2017, a YouTuber documented the gender reveal of parents-to-be Abian Urquidez and Yvonne Alvarado. The couple used a 2002 Ford Lightning, and the burn out was pretty successful at first. But as the blue smoke came out, the back tires caught on fire while Abian and Yvonne were still in the car. Thankfully, it didn’t get out of hand or lead to any injuries. The couple safely exited the car as their loved ones cheered them on, and then proceeded to release a set of blue balloons, celebrating their baby boy.

This gender reveal explosion led to a wildfire

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Arizona Daily Star

In 2017, Dennis Dickey and his wife decided to reveal the gender of their baby using an exploding target. In the middle of tall dry grass. With wind gusts up to 40 mph… But apparently, this wasn’t enough to stop them from trying such a risky stunt. Immediately after Dennis shot his firearm at the target, blue smoke erupted, revealing that it’s a boy. But then, a bunch of the grass caught on fire and quickly spread.

That one explosion, which got filmed by a witness, burned over 47,000 acres and cost a whopping $8.2 million to put out. As a result, Dennis was charged with misdemeanor for causing the Sawmill Fire without a permit and got sentenced to five years’ probation. Also, under his plea deal, he agreed to pay $120,000 (in monthly installments of $500 for 20 years) plus $100,000 in restitution.

A YouTuber did a Tannerite Gender Reveal

gender reveal
YouTube

When YouTuber Haley (who runs LetsMama.com) and her husband Jordan did their first gender reveal, they used the classic cake method (it was a boy). But the second time around, they took things up a few notches and decided to try the good ole Tannerite gender reveal explosion. It took place at Jordan’s parent’s acreage, and a small group of their loved ones gathered to watch the reveal. After the target was shot, pink chalk burst out, indicating that it’s a girl.

And so did this couple

gender reveal
YouTube

Halie and E have quite the success story. The couple has been documenting their infertility journey since they were diagnosed with unexplained male factor infertility. Their first IVF failed, but their second try turned out to be successful and, understandably, they wanted to do something spectacular for the gender reveal. They used a Tannerite explosive target which had blue powder, revealing that the couple was having a boy. Their reaction was just priceless.

This couple played paintball to reveal the baby’s gender

gender reveal
YouTube

This celebration was rather awkward, considering how annoyed the father looked the entire time. But even that didn’t stop the family from celebrating the big reveal. After experiencing some difficulty with the paintball gun, the mom aimed it at the father and shot it a few times before he walked out of view. The color was hard to see, but the crowd happily revealed: “It’s a boy!”

When the dad-to-be walked back into view and towards the mom, she playfully took another shot at him, but he wasn’t having it. He yelled at her to “put the gun down,” then proceeded to grab it from her. *Cringe*

This Fitness-themed reveal was quite the workout

gender reveal
YouTube

Fitness YouTuber Jonah Fit decided to use a popular workout method to reveal the gender of his unborn child. He deadlifted what looked like about 1801bs, but for the added gender-reveal twist, his friends attached bags of colored powder to the weights. After he dropped the loaded bar to the ground, both bags burst to reveal pink powder, and then the crowd went wild. This was so clever!

This dad chopped down a tree

gender reveal
YouTube

Married couple Trevor and Tayler Hager did a lumberjack gender reveal that actually left us scratching our heads. While in the forest, Trevor casually whipped out a chainsaw while his pregnant wife was standing mere inches away. Then, in the next shot, he can be seen cutting down a tree until a bunch of blue paint comes gushing out. After cutting it down completely, his wife reappears and Trevor proudly announces that they’ll be having a “Lumberjack.”

For starters, how in the world did they get all that paint into the tree? Why did Trevor sound like an amateur salesman? And why is it that Tayler barely said a word? We’re kind of concerned.

A couple used chemistry to do their reveal

gender reveal
YouTube

The Burkes did a pretty cool experiment right in their backyard, where they made a bunch of colored foam to reveal that their child is a boy. The popular science experiment requires potassium iodide, liquid hydrogen peroxide, dish washing liquid, and food coloring. And if you’re wondering exactly how it works, the potassium iodide acts as a catalyst to break apart the hydrogen peroxide molecules, turning it into water and oxygen. The extra oxygen gets caught up in the soap, which helps to create the foamy substance (or “elephant toothpaste”).

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