Lost 1966 Reel Exposes Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot Film as a Hoax in New Documentary

A 40-second 16mm reel shot in 1966, kept in a safe for more than five decades and never shown publicly, has surfaced as proof that the Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot film was staged. Director Marq Evans presents the material in Capturing Bigfoot, which Variety reviewed as an attempt to settle the question definitively. The original footage — just under a minute of shaky, grainy 16mm — was allegedly recorded on October 20, 1967 by Roger Patterson and Robert "Bob" Gimlin in the forests of Northern California, showing a seven-foot-tall hirsute figure walking at a distance. Frame 352 remains the clip's best-known image. The documentary reaches Amazon Prime Video on October 20, the 59th anniversary of the 1967 film. Evans' discovery is framed as undeniable evidence of an elaborate fraud, yet the film also examines why 59 seconds of footage held believers and skeptics for nearly six decades, and why it still resonates in an era of heightened distrust toward authority, science and visual media. The source notes that such proof is unlikely to sway committed believers, comparing the dynamic to convictions about other cryptids, UFOs and conspiracy theories. The publication discloses that its articles may contain affiliate links.