Twitter/@carterjwm
On April 5 2017, Carter Wilkerson tweeted at Wendy’s to ask how many retweets he’d need to get a year of free chicken nuggets. Wendy’s gave him the impossible tack of reaching 18 million RTs.
Wilkerson clearly has seen all of the Mission Impossible movies because he went to work. Though he hasn’t yet reached 18 million, he did surpass Ellen DeGeneres’ famous Oscar selfie to become the world’s most retweeted on Tuesday morning.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 16-year-old Nevada teen.
He Broke Ellen DeGeneres’ Twitter Record
As of Tuesday morning, Carter’s tweet boasted around 3.5 million RTs, besting DeGeneres’ record. When the talk show host first heard about Wilkerson’s campaign, she enlisted the help of Bradley Cooper to bolster their own numbers. Together, the two created a hilarious PSA which you can watch below.
Wilkerson was invited to be a part of the show and received a big screen TV and a year’s supply of Ellen underwear in an attempt to “incentivize” Carter to not break her record.
Wilkerson’s Follow Count Skyrocketed From 150 to 104,000
While on Ellen’s show, Wilkerson revealed he had just 150 Twitter followers when he first began his campaign. Now, just five weeks later, he has more than 104,000.
Carter explains that the morning after he posted the tweet, he woke up to 50,00 retweets. “I thought I was dreaming. I was dumbfounded– it was crazy.” Ellen jokingly responds, “Well it is crazy.” Before leaving the show, Ellen threatened, “If you pass me, Carter, I will come to your house. I will take that TV back, I will take the underwear back, and I will… do more.”
Wendy’s Is Paying Up
When Wilkerson broke the RT record, Wendy’s announced that they would give him free nuggets for a year and make a $100,000 donation in his name to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.
In a statement, Kurt Kane, the chief concept and marketing officer for The Wendy’s Company, said, “You’ve more than earned our respect … and the nuggets.”
Wilkerson told the New York Times that he has always thought of following in his parents footsteps and becoming a dentist, but now he says he is considering studying marketing.
High School Athlete
Wilkerson, the oldest of four siblings, runs hurdles in track and is the captain of his high school’s football team. According to the New York Times, he only created a Twitter account in the first place to follow sports teams and find funny memes.
