Synopsis
El-P cruises through New York City in a convertible alongside Mr. Killums, a disreputable squirrel puppet with an eye patch and a taste for chaos. Their road trip unfolds as a surreal spree of drug use, reckless behavior, violence, drinking and sexual excess, with Killer Mike and other characters appearing along the way. Mixing crude comedy with a deliberately grimy, documentary-like visual style, the video turns the song's aggression and self-destructive energy into an outrageous buddy-movie parody.
Factoids & Trivia
- Mr. Killums began as an idea inspired by Toonces the Driving Cat, a recurring Saturday Night Live character. El-P and the creative team eventually transformed the concept into an eye-patched squirrel.
- The video was shot on location in New York City during the early summer of 2012. The production intentionally used familiar places and people to preserve a raw, documentary-like feel.
- The filmmakers described the clip as an attack on polished music-video aesthetics. Its deliberately excessive editing and bombastic presentation were designed to match El-P's production style while keeping the humor at the center.
- The puppet was built by Jeff Roberts. Puppetry was shared between a dedicated puppeteer, the production team and performers involved in several of the more risqué scenes.
- The title of the song references the 2008 film "Tropic Thunder." El-P said the reference was intended as a joke about people patronizing those with intellectual disabilities, rather than as a literal statement about them.
- The video appeared during the rollout of El-P's 2012 album "Cancer 4 Cure," released through Fat Possum Records.