David Blaine showed off a mind-blowing card trick to strangers on a plane and it's pure magic
"I watched this 10 times. He might actually have powers."
David Blaine blew everyone's minds with a card trick on an airplane.
Many of us first glimpsed the brilliance of magician/illusionist David Blaine in his first ABC special, 1997’s Street Magic. Everything about the documentary felt unique: his deadpan delivery and approachable demeanor, the cinéma vérité feel of the production, the fly-on-the-wall atmosphere of watching Blaine perform card tricks for both strangers and celebrities. (There was even an on-screen interview cameo from a young Leonardo DiCaprio.)
Since then, of course, Blaine has become one of the biggest names in the illusion game, even as he’s expanded beyond that format to attempt an array of shocking public stunts—like 2020’s "Ascension," in which he live-streamed himself floating into the air above Arizona while holding onto a cluster of helium-filled balloons. At this point, the dude is way beyond "Is this your card?"
- YouTube www.youtube.com
Blaine on a plane
That said, he’s still a master in that arena, as evidenced by a recent viral TikTok clip. User assssshleigh94 posted a plane-filmed video in which they happen to be seated next to Blaine himself during a flight to Cancun, Mexico. The magician takes command of his immediate area, recruiting his neighbors for their assistance in a mind-boggling card trick that left everyone confused and laughing hysterically.
Blaine starts off the clip asking if everyone can see, including the people seated behind him. He has Assssshleigh94 hold an ace of diamonds between pinched fingers and, after some logistical sleight of hand, ends by asking the cameraperson their "favorite number up to 10." They respond "7," leading to Blaine’s big reveal: "Because he said 7—did you see what I was doing with my left hand? You couldn’t see from there. You might be able to see it on [the video]. I was pulling the 7s out of the deck. You just called out '7.' When you did that, I pulled the 7s out and I put them [points down to the deck]."
@assssshleigh94 When you sit next to Mr Magic himself on the way to Cancun, Mexico🪄@DavidBlaine #magic #jetblue #davidblaine #nowyouseeme #cancun
Internet comments are their own kind of magic
How did Blaine do this? I have no answers, but it feels like some kind of Jedi mind trick.
Someone in the TikTok comments wrote, "[T]he trick is called Double Lift, google it," but several other people said they wouldn’t dare. "Why would I do that[?]" someone responded. "I don’t wanna know how magic works."
Agreed. I don’t want to ruin the fun for myself by thinking too hard about it. Instead of analyzing the video frame by frame, we can just enjoy more of the comments, which are also quite entertaining. Here are some highlights:
"(As they’re getting off the plane) 'you all thought we were going to Hawaii? Would you be impressed if we were in Texas?'”
"David Blaine slowly morphing into Jeff Goldblum"
"This is probably the safest flight one can be on"
"Blaine: how many wings does a plane have? Look out the window.. 😳"
"David Plaine"
"I’ve never been offered this seat upgrade option"
"I love how he IMMEDIATELY goes to perform another trick to another passenger before they are even done reacting! Haha"
Amazingly, according to assssshleigh94, this wasn’t Blaine’s only card trick of the day. Responding to the last comment above, they wrote, "Seriously the entire flight! We never once asked for tricks. [H]e was so excited to share them with us!!"
What a gift it is to be able to blow people’s minds everywhere you travel. David Blaine, never change.
- YouTube www.youtube.com