A Toronto-based model has been left with rope burns after being used as human fishing bait in a dangerous stunt that saw her dragged underwater by a shark in Florida, sparking widespread criticism online despite the clip attracting more than 10.6 million views.
CeCe Rose was filmed for a video by influencer Anthony Dawson, known online as TooTurntTony, after agreeing to be hurled into the water with a rope tied around her ankles and a dead fish attached to her as bait. She spent several hours floating peacefully in the water before a nurse shark eventually took the bait, dragging her underwater in front of the camera.
Speaking about the stunt afterwards, CeCe said she had tried to suppress her fear before agreeing to film it. “At the end of the day I knew a great white shark wouldn’t be in the area so I just held onto that thought,” she said. In the footage, she can be heard screaming for Anthony as she is pulled under, resurfacing moments later as the shark continued dragging her away from a pier pavilion. “I’d say it was around two minutes. Could have been less it just felt that long,” she said of the ordeal. “Tony was quick to get me out of the water fairly quickly but in the moment it felt like a long time.”
CeCe said the stunt had been carefully discussed in advance, including worst-case scenarios, with Dawson assessing the risk as relatively low given his familiarity with the location. “We were filming at one of Tony’s properties. He’s been there for a while and got to know what’s in the water. He felt like the risk factor was only about 10 per cent but we also had discussed worst case scenarios.”
In the video, Dawson is seen sprinting to grab a fishing rod as the shark takes the bait. “I left her alone for five minutes and we got hit,” he said, before adding: “Probably should have used a smaller bait. This was a complete s*** show. Luckily we were able to bring her in safely as well as the beast.” The footage concludes with Dawson, CeCe and two young boys posing with the nurse shark before releasing it back into the water. “And nobody was harmed,” Dawson said, showing close-up footage of rope marks left around CeCe’s ankles.
While the clip has drawn millions of views and amused reactions, others have expressed serious concern about the stunt. “This is so dangerous wtf how can people support him right now,” one commenter wrote. Another said: “This would be a s***ty way to die getting waterboarded by a shark.” A third warned: “I’ll tell you what, one of these times something’s gonna happen and you’re definitely gonna regret it.” Another added: “I hate to say it, but damn. We all don’t come out lucky over and over after doing the most dumbest things ever. Just remember, fun always comes with a price tag.”
