Orange Justice is a dance move that gained popularity as part of the video game Fortnite Battle Royale.[1] It is characterized by its energetic, exaggerated arm and leg movements, and it became a cultural phenomenon within the gaming and social media communities.[2][3]
Origins
The origin of Orange Justice can be traced back to a dance submission by a young boy known as "Orange Shirt Kid" during the Fortnite BoogieDown Contest in early 2018.[1] The contest, held by Epic Games, the developer of Fortnite, invited players to submit videos of their dance moves for a chance to have them included in the game as emotes.[1] The user Kid_Fortnite12 performed the dance in an orange shirt.[1] In the submission video, he called it "The Random".[4] Despite not winning the contest getting 23rd place, Orange Shirt Kid's dance gained widespread popularity due to its unique and humorous movements.[5] It led to a community campaign that started on a RedditFortnite page that promoted "Justice for Orange Shirt Kid".[1] On Twitter, the hashtag #JusticeForOrangeShirtKid trended.[6] A Change.org petition was created to convince Epic to add the dance.[7]
Adoption in Fortnite
Following a strong community push and the viral nature of the dance, Epic Games added Orange Justice to Fortnite Battle Royale as a reward for players who reached tier 26 of the Season 4 Battle Pass.[8] The inclusion of the dance was largely seen as a response to the support from the Fortnite community, who felt that Orange Shirt Kid's dance deserved a spot in the game.[1]
Dance description
The dance involves a series of rapid, exaggerated movements starting with the dancer bending their knees and pumping their arms in a criss-cross pattern.[5][9][10] This is followed by a shrug and a clap above the head.[5][9][10]
Reception and legacy
Orange Justice became one of the most recognizable dances in Fortnite, contributing to the game's cultural footprint.[11] It has demonstrated the influence of player-driven content in modern video games and how community engagement can shape the development and content of a game.[12] It has inspired memes, parodies, and dance challenges.[13] It has even been used to promote fitness among youth.[14]Michelle Obama performed the dance in one notable instance.[15][16][17]
Lawsuit
In 2019, Rachel McCumbers, the mother of "Orange Shirt Kid" filed a lawsuit against Epic Games for "unauthorized misappropriation", essentially claiming that the company was monetizing the emotes without adequate credit or consent.[4][18] This follows other suits from Alfonso Ribeiro, rapper 2 Milly, and Backpack Kid who all filed similar suits.[4][7] The plaintiff pointed out the dance was named "Orange Justice" rather the original name "The Random".[7][18] The attorney for the plaintiff attempted to obtain registration for the Orange Shirt Kid's dance.[18] The plaintiff case notably did not mention that the dance move was submitted as part of a contest which granted Epic Games use of it.[18][19] Furthermore, in the United States, simple, unchoreographed dance moves are not protected under copyright law.[19][20]
^Marshall, Wayne (2019). "Social Dance in the Age of (Anti-)Social Media". Journal of Popular Music Studies. 31 (4). University of California Press: 3–15. doi:10.1525/jpms.2019.31.4.3. ISSN1533-1598.
