A NASA video meant to showcase life in space has instead set social media on fire, with conspiracy theories claiming the Artemis II mission is being faked using green screens.
The clip, taken from a live CNN interview with the crew, quickly went viral after viewers spotted what appeared to be strange text glitches behind a floating plush toy. Some users jumped to conclusions, suggesting the footage was staged rather than filmed in zero gravity.
It echoes long-running Moon landing conspiracies from the 1970s, when similar claims surrounded the Apollo missions. Now, as NASA sends astronauts back around the Moon for the first time in decades, those same doubts are making a comeback online.
How the viral clip triggered suspicion
The moment in question came as the Artemis II crew spoke about their mission, which would see them fly past the far side of the Moon. During the interview, a plush toy named ‘Rise’ floated around the capsule, demonstrating the effects of zero gravity.
But in a version of the clip shared online, a woman pointed out that letters like “OW” and “TAN” briefly appeared behind the toy. This led some viewers to claim the footage showed a glitch from a green screen setup.
🚨 A viral video of an Artemis 2 interview has been doing the rounds on X showing an apparent “blue screen” chromakey text glitch. However it is NOT present in the original.
See original left below and “Viral” video inset right 👇
Source (from 4:20) https://t.co/5UpCy3ygxY pic.twitter.com/VTruSPHVGJ
— Max DeLargo (@banthebbc) April 5, 2026
The astronauts involved, including Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, appeared unaware of anything unusual during the broadcast.
Social media reactions split viewers
The clip quickly divided opinion across social platforms. Some were convinced it was proof of a staged mission, while others dismissed the theory outright.
One person wrote: “duh… even my dog knows it’s fake…”
Another claimed: “Fake as hell they really thought they can continue fooling people with all this current Technology that debunks everything in realtime…”
But others pushed back strongly against the claims.
One user said: “Green screen? It’s the stuffed animal called RISE that if you see clearly has GREEN for the continents For God’s sake with these people!”
Another added: “I watched this live, there is no way it’s fake. All the clips I see trying to expose is it literally edited.”
The likely explanation behind the ‘glitch’
According to the Daily Mail, the strange text may have nothing to do with green screens at all. The broadcast used Chroma Key technology, a common technique that allows graphics or backgrounds to be layered over video.
Live TV interviews, especially on networks like CNN, often include text overlays at the bottom of the screen. If those overlays refresh at slightly different times than the main video feed, they can briefly appear out of place.
That effect can become more noticeable when someone records the footage on a smartphone from a TV screen, potentially creating the illusion of a glitch.
