“I have thought about and reflected on my costume and I will not be wearing it, and apologise wholeheartedly to anyone who was offended by it. That was definitely not my intention. I apologise sincerely.”
Many TikTok users weren’t completely satisfied with Sophia’s apology and called her out in the comments section of her apology video.
One user wrote, “I feel like an appropriate duo would of been Steve and crocodile not a stingray I mean all I can say is imagine if Robert saw that!.😳 [sic],” while another said, “Yeah look, it's offensive to his family. Dressing up and making fun of the way he was killed, idk if that was my Dad and I saw that I'd be upset [sic].”
However, some users came to Sophia’s defence; they even argued that Steve Irwin himself would’ve found the costume funny if he were still alive today.
WATCH: Steve Irwin’s funniest moments
“This is silly! I bet you Steve would have thought it was hilarious,” one user wrote.
“People wanna [sic] be offended to feel important, I’m sure Steve the legend would’ve thought it was funny,” another said.
Steve died on September 4, 2006. While filming a documentary at Queensland’s Batt Reef, the Crocodile Hunter was pierced in the chest by a stingray’s barb.