Megan Grass of Utah took a trip to the Australia Zoo in Queensland in June and according to her viral TikTok video, ran into her crush, Robert Irwin, 18, the son of the famed “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin.
Steve Irwin died in 2006 but his family has continued his legacy. Robert, along with his mother Terri and sister Bindi, now star in the Animal Planet reality TV show “Crikey! It’s the Irwins.”
When Megan saw Robert working at the zoo, she didn’t waste her moment. She took the open shot and asked him for his phone number, which caught him a bit off guard. “I think you’re so cute, and I was wondering if I could have your number?” she called down to him in the video.
Robert asked Megan where she was from and kindly directed her to send him a direct message on Instagram.
@megangrass12 tiktok do your thing @Robert Irwin #fyp#australiazoo #crikey
The video of Megan’s aggressive ask and Robert’s polite misdirection went viral on TikTok earning more than 15 million views. Commenters praised Robert for his tact while gently letting her down.
“He’s just like his dad, so sweet and precious,” a TikTok user also named Megan wrote.
“Sorry but you need to be vetted by the public before even trying. He’s a world treasure we can’t take this lightly,” Sean Clodwick added.
“Nobody could say ‘no’ nicer than this dude,” Holly Morris said.
The video took off so quickly that Megan was interviewed on Australia’s “Today” show the day after she posted the video. During the interview, she called Robert, “literally the sweetest person ever. I was a stranger who asked for his number and he didn’t have to be polite about it but he definitely was and I just think he’s a great guy altogether.”
She was also blown away by the video’s popularity. “I definitely was not expecting it to blow up the way it did, but it was a really cool experience altogether, and Robert was so sweet about it,” she said.
Robert eventually addressed his relationship with Megan in a video she posted to TikTok.
Spoiler alert: It doesn’t look like it’s going to happen.
@megangrass12 HE RESPONDED!! thank you so much @robertirwin🤍 #fyp
“That made my entire day,” he said on Studio 10. “That was incredibly kind and a big ‘thank you’ to Megan wherever she is. That really meant a lot.” Then he explained that he can’t give his number out to people who may share it on TikTok.
“Kudos for [having] the confidence to ask that and it’s great to have that little chat and see the people who are really keen on the message I’m sending out in the world,” he continued.
It looks like there wasn’t a love connection between Megan and Robert. But it was wonderful seeing that in a candid moment Robert has the same infectious kindness that made his father a global treasure.
Megan appears to be taking her very public rejection well. She posted another video on TikTok where she said that there are “more fish in the sea.” However, a commenter named mystery_goat coldly noted that “and yet there is only one Robert Irwin.”
@megangrass12 someday #fyp #fish