Nick Joseph and Dan Rue are a YouTube comedy duo best known for originating the meme, "Oh no baby! What is you doing?"
Last year, they filmed a video in Japan.
View this video on YouTube
While the video was initially shared in September, it was reposted to social media in December.
The video includes a lot of the pair's usual content — dancing in public and Joseph shouting "oh no" at Rue.
However, at the end of the video, Rue is shown grabbing a child from a market and running off with her.
The video was, until recently, pinned to Rue's Twitter page, including the caption, "I found the girl from Rush Hour," referencing the 1998 film partly set in Hong Kong.
In what appears to be part of the backlash to Logan Paul's recent video in Japan, the video has provoked outrage in recent days.
#Retweet if you think this is #childabuse. Help report each video below. This #YouTuber shows off snatching a littl… https://t.co/qtXzXqLHGE
I don't like bringing attention to this kind of content but If you wanna be an annoying & obnoxious dickhead in pub… https://t.co/OchpnygtSB
Many have asked people to report the video to the various platforms it has been posted on and for Rue's Twitter account to be deleted.
#バカはユニバーサル 通報及び拡散 He is a child predator and tried to kidnap a little girl in japan. We Japanese don’t have any tol… https://t.co/cmsvTVX6Z5
@DanRue_IG @twitter He is kidnapping. Please close and delete this account immediately.
In Japan, the video was shared on 2chan, where users compared the act to kidnapping.
Following the backlash, Rue removed the pinned tweet and issued a statement saying the video was staged, and the family involved were "laughing" along.
Hope you all kno this was staged with the family and the child is clearly laughing in the video.We had to edit her… https://t.co/LniW8csVeU
Rue and Joseph provided the following comment for BuzzFeed News via email.
"Nick and I are a comedic skit duo, so unfortunately no matter what we do, some will find a way to turn it into something negative, but anything we do will never come from a place of hate. There are even many A-list actors and comedians that humorously imitate different ethnicities & cultures in their comedic skits, stand ups or roles, but that doesn’t mean they are racists. Like them, it’s our job to make the world laugh and sometimes that includes imitating but in no means are we creating hate or racism division or intentionally meaning to offend anyone. We embrace everyone regardless of their background, unfortunately we live in a sensitive time where no matter what you do or say, some find a way to pick one thing and make it about racism or hate."