A video featuring Walker discussing the horror film Fright Night had been viewed more than 1.8 million times as of Wednesday evening. The video shows the candidate, who is set to face incumbent Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock in Georgia’s December 6 runoff election, saying that “vampires are cool people” and revealing that he “wanted to be a werewolf” while arguing that the “stupid” movie shows why people need “faith.”
“I was watching this movie called Fright Night,” Walker said Wednesday during the speech on the stump in McDonough, Georgia, in a video tweeted by journalist Aaron Rupar. “It was about vampires. I don’t know if you know, vampires are cool people, are they not? But I want to tell you something that I found out. A werewolf can kill a vampire, did you know that? I didn’t know that. So, I don’t want to be a vampire anymore, I wanted to be a werewolf.”
Walker went on to describe a vampire from the movie as looking “like Senator Warnock.” He then recalled other characters in the movie attempting to defeat the vampire with holy water and a cross, only to be told by the fictional monster “that don’t work.”
“And that’s the way it is in our life,” Walker said. “It doesn’t even work unless you got faith. It is time for us to have faith. You’ve gotta have faith in our fellow brother. You’ve got to have faith in this country, got to have faith in elected officials. And right now, that’s the reason I’m here.”
Walker was mocked by many as the video went viral, with some comparing the moment to another bizarre campaign speech from the Republican this month, when he pledged to protect “martians” because they are part of his “family.”
“First, Herschel Walker goes on about Martians,” Democratic fundraiser Jon Cooper tweeted. “Now, he’s on a rant about vampires and werewolves. I’m sorry, but there’s something really OFF about this guy. Who agrees?”
“He does NOT belong in the Senate but if they let Herschel Walker yammer and blather about vampires and werewolves and monsters for an hour each week I’d watch,” tweeted comedian Patton Oswalt.
“I saw Herschel Walker telling werewolf stories to a slack-jawed crowd. His hair was perfect,” Mystery Science Theater 3000 writer and performer J. Elvis Weinstein tweeted, likely in reference to lyrics from the Warren Zevon hit song “Werewolves of London.”
“A vote for Herschel Walker is a vote for vampires,” tweeted television writer Rick G. Rosner. “And for werewolves. (Pretty sure there’s a better candidate than this knucklehead.)”
“‘Herschel Walker, Vampire Slayer’ actually makes a lot more sense than Herschel Walker, United States Senator,” political commentator Keith Boykin tweeted.
Jezebel also published a tongue-in-cheek “fact check” article on Walker’s assertion that “a werewolf can kill a vampire.” The website concluded that he had inaccurately described events from both the original Fright Night and its 2011 remake, although he was “technically right” based on a different horror movie.
Walker finished roughly 1 percent behind Warnock in the midterm election this month. The seat will be decided by a runoff due to neither candidate achieving a simple majority, which is required under Georgia law.
Regardless of the runoff election’s outcome, the Senate will remain under Democratic control as the party has already secured 50 seats.
Newsweek has reached out to the Walker campaign for comment.
