William Chapman, who was fatally mauled by a 420-pound tiger, had reportedly shared a video capturing his final moments inside the UK wildlife park.
Minutes before the tiger named Altai attacked him, a video had gone up on William’s Instagram grid, showing what happened after he climbed into the tiger enclosure.
“Oh my God!” fellow parkgoers were heard shrieking in the background of his video.
Highlights
- William Chapman reportedly shared a video of himself approaching the tiger minutes before the fatal attack.
- Witnesses claimed he was happily dancing and asking strangers to take pictures of him before allegedly climbing into the enclosure.
- A mother with two kids tried to “pull him back,” according to one park visitor.
- William’s mother had written a blog post about his days as a child actor.
William Chapman shared a video of his final moments inside the tiger enclosure of a UK wildlife park
William Chapman/Instagram
William Chapman’s Instagram profile had a number of eerie posts shared before his passing at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park near Doncaster, northern England.
One of them was a video of the victim’s final moments after allegedly climbing into the “Land of the Tigers” exhibit at around 1.35 p.m. on October 10.
Prior to the tiger attack, William was seen asking a stranger to click photos of him while the Amur tiger was in the background.
Manchester Evening News/YouTube
Fellow visitors said he was happily dancing and asking them to take more pictures.
“One more, one more, one more!” one said.
“Thank you, lady,” William eventually said, as per footage acquired by investigators.
Del Taylor, who clicked pictures for the eager man, claimed “he was so happy” at the time.
Horrified visitors were heard screaming as William climbed into the predator’s enclosure
unutulmazhaber/X
In the video shared by William himself, his last minutes were captured on camera after he climbed into the enclosure.
The tiger was seen lying on a raised wooden platform in his video.
William was heard breathing heavily inside the tiger pen and slowly approaching the wild cat, who was staring back at him from the platform.
“Oh my god,” onlookers were heard saying.
İngiltere’de Yorkshire Vahşi Yaşam Parkı’nda bir kaplanın kafesine atlayan genç, kaplanın saldırısına uğraması sonucu hayatını kaybetti. https://t.co/s6u97Rt9ts
— unutulmaz. (@unutulmazhaber) October 10, 2026
The victim in his mid-20s continued moving towards the massive predator until the clip eventually cut off.
Other viral clips online showed the tiger grabbing the back of William’s shirt and tugging at him.
Anthony Hunt, who was in the same zoo on the day of the attack, said there was a mother who tried to stop William from jumping into the enclosure.
“He overpowered her and jumped off. She seemed really frightened,” Anthony told The Telegraph about the mother, visiting the zoo with her two kids.
“We spoke to her after and she was like: ‘I tried to pull him back.’ But I guess she didn’t want to risk her own life as well,” he added.
“I tried to pull him back,” a mother with two kids said, according to a fellow park visitor
yorkshirewildlifepark/Instagram
Onlookers also claimed he seemed “not attached to reality” during the tiger attack and ordered the animal to “stop being naughty.”
The staff at the park fired two warning sh*ts with a weapon to scare Altai off.
The tiger then withdrew into his pen, and the staffers rushed to save William. But he was unfortunately pronounced lifeless at the scene.
William Chapman/Instagram
While growing up, William was a child actor who has appeared in the ITV production May Contain Nuts, which also starred Shirley Henderson, best known for playing the ghost of Moaning Myrtle in the Harry Potter films.
William also played the character of Edward Jenner in the BBC drama series True Stories.
His mother wrote a blog post in 2014, in which she wrote about her son auditioning for May Contain Nuts at the age of five.
She also spoke about his time attending the Jackie Palmer Stage School in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.
William’s mother wrote a blog post about his experiences as a child actor
“He has learnt a great deal in his time there, and whilst he doesn’t enjoy singing and dancing so much now he’s a teenager, he is passionate about acting and drama,” she wrote.
Police described him as a “vulnerable man in his early 20s,” while his family said he had been suffering from mental illness for several years.
His Instagram account included a picture of him holding a Bible in one hand, a crossbow in the other, and an arrow in his mouth.
The Yorkshire Wildlife Park shared an update about the tiger’s fate
This is the video William Chapman recorded on his phone after he jumped into the enclosure, making his way to approach the Tiger that was resting on top of the shed, the video is believed to have been posted on his instagram shortly after.
People’s disbelief can be heard in… pic.twitter.com/EtUNGfuhQk
— SK 💃🏾🕺 (@Rimmesfk) October 13, 2026
Following the attack, many raised questions about the tiger’s future and whether he would be put down.
The park addressed concerns on the day after the attack, saying Altai would not be euthanised over the tragic incident.
“Many, many people have contacted us about Altai, the tiger. We can reassure everyone that he is safe and well and will not be euthanized as a result of this incident,” they said.
The park thanked people for expressing their concern and shared their “heartfelt sympathies” to the bereaved family.