One of the funniest and all-around best movies of the 2000s (for certain crowds), Judd Apatow’s Superbad is so memorable that co-writer and co-star Seth Rogen has had rappers quote it at him verbatim, totally unprovoked. But with props to Michael Cera, Jonah Hill, and Emma Stone, I think we’d all agree its lasting legacy lies in the character McLovin, portrayed with runtish glee by Christopher Mintz-Plasse. The comedy celebrated 19 years since its theatrical release on August 17, but that’s not why McLovin started trending on August 18.
No, the awkward teen’s Fake ID moniker made waves anew on social media after a high-profile drug bust led to the arrests of 14 Penn State fraternity members from two different fraternities involved in a complex cocaine trafficking ring. The Long Island native who is alleged to have been at the “very top of the chain” is Agostino Abbatiello, who apparently picked up the moniker “Pablo Pledgescobar,” a punny riff on the notorious Pablo Escobar, during his time at the university.
But it’s not so much the details of the crimes that caught people’s attention on social media, even though the nickname has garnered some positive reactions. Rather, it’s his bespectacled look + his status that have others referencing the 2007 comedy.
BREAKING: Alleged Penn State cocaine kingpin, dubbed “Pablo Pledgescobar,” turns himself in & is denied bail. https://t.co/Kp6ZO5sfxZ pic.twitter.com/39R4w19pn8August 18, 2026
It's obviously not an exact 1:1 match, but then it really doesn't need to be to spark ridiculous reactions. Let's look at a few of them below.
- I won’t comment on the Penn State cocaine debacle. No doubt, a made for TV movie or Netflix special will come from it. Quite a unique story. My only observation: the ringleader looks exactly like McLovin from the iconic movie “Superbad”. I had to do a triple take when I saw him. - @PittGuru
- Say my name… McLovin. - @@proverbs_18_2
- Go ahead and give McLovin the RICO - @jackfreeman
- Mad props to McLovin Jr here, Pablo Pledgescobar might be the greatest nickname ever. - @HollywoodLowman
- McLovin took a real dark path after high school. - @TheyCallMeSmeef
- If McLovin had a baby with that dude on Big Bang Theory. - @ScottKacsmar
- Buddy look like Temu mclovin - @Hadometa
Superbad's beloved nerdling was no doubt guilty of a few criminal acts during the events of Superbad, but I cannot imagine the dude that chose "McLovin" as his 21+ alias would become a kingpin of anything in his educational future, much less cocaine. Plus, McLovin is funny, which can't be said about drug trafficking on college campuses.
Despite its arguable "funniest movie ever" status, Superbad is everyone's go-to example of a teen-geared movie that wouldn’t get made today, given how relentlessly raunchy and sex pest-y it can get. (We never even got a sequel.) But Christopher Mintz-Plasse reunited with Seth Rogen for The Boys Season 5 relatively recently, and that show did things that absolutely could not have been done on a “television series” in 2007, so I guess it’s a give and take.
Stepping back to the criminal activity that sparked the comparisons, the New York Post reports the frats Sigma Chi and Delta Upsilon were engaged in a ring of distributution that involved attaining cocaine from suppliers in New York and Philadelphia, with pledges being forced to cut and bag the drugs that were then dealt out to the student body.
Four of those charged are currently enrolled at Penn State students, nine are former students, and one is a student's father. Some of the charges include, but are not limited to: felony conspiracy, criminal use of a communication facility, felony tampering, corrupt organizations and dealing in proceeds of unlawful activity.
