Actor/director Kevin Smith’s daughter, Harley Quinn (Kevin is a huge comic book fan), was involved in an attempted kidnapping last week.
The 16-year-old actress, starring in her Dad’s upcoming movie Yoga Hosers, posted a lengthy account of the incident on her Instagram page. Harley was outside of a Brentwood Starbucks when two men in a Jeep approached her and told her that they were her Uber drivers. Fortunately, Harley was smart enough to ask questions of the drivers as well as notice that neither driver had the Uber app on their phones. She said, “I wasn’t thinking straight enough to think to take a picture of the drivers or the license plate” but encouraged anyone who saw the suspicious vehicle to contact the police. She ended the post with some good advice, “Be careful and look out for yourself/others!!!!”
Protective Papa Bear Kevin posted news of the incident on his Twitter page, tweeting “BE ALERT! Two white men in beige Jeep posed as @Uber and just tried to talk my kid into getting in their car outside Brentwood Starbucks.” He later offered a safety tip, “When you leave the house, always bring something stabby, Kids. Or buy some pepper spray.” Best of all, Kevin tried to help ease his daughter’s anxiety with a cake bearing the frosted message “Sorry men suck”. Harley posted a picture of the cake with the caption, “just when I was about to lose faith in humanity after almost being kidnapped today, my dad got me this cake and made me remember that some people, like himself, make the world a lot better :)” That’s like the ultimate “Dad joke”, huh?
Kevin and his daughter have a great relationship. He recently gave Harley the prop bat used by her comic book counterpart in the upcoming the Suicide Squad movie as a gift. Who would ever have guessed Silent Bob would turn out to be a great Dad?
That near kidnapping is pretty scary. I’m glad Harley is okay, and glad she (and her Dad) used social media to alert others of the potential danger. It may be a while before I use Uber again as well. Scary.
Photo Credit: Instagram/Harley Quinn Smith, Kevin Smith, WENN, Getty Images
My husband has always been concerned about the safety factor with Uber. In this case, though, it’s very similar to having an “independent” cab in New York offer you a ride. That has happened to me several times at the train station. I wouldn’t ever accept, of course, but you can’t really blame Uber for this. It’s not as if these men were Uber employees.
GNAT, you and your husband should be concerned. Here’s one that floored me: my Medicare insurance has a “transportation service” they urged me to try. The first four trips were free. What they neglected to tell me is: it’s a guy and his car. Nope. Never again.
Kudos to a smart kid and her sweet father!
Yeah, usually they have the logo in their car for you to see it. Also check your phone/app because it has the license plate & the name or sometimes picture of your driver. I always check & before getting in I text someone just to let them know I’m on my way or I’m in my Uber/Lyft. I’ve never had that experience before & I’m glad I haven’t, that’s really scary. They’re quite adorable I have to admit, that cake is really funny.
I used to take those independent car services all the time when I was young and silly in nyc (yikes, don’t tell my mom!). Late night it was almost impossible to get a cab to take you to Brooklyn, so it was that or the subway. All changed now…
Yep, unregulated, not my thing!
She’s adorable. Why is a 16 year old calling Uber?
That’s your one question about this story? Are you the kind of person that asks what the girl was wearing in sexual assault cases?
Maybe she was drinking, but there are worse things a 16yo in Hollywood could do.
Exactly. Or maybe she doesn’t have her license yet. Not all kids get their license the day they turn 16. Mine didn’t. They each had to drive 50 supervised hours which takes a lot of time.
Why would she be calling Uber? That’s a silly question. Why would a 16 year old take a cab? It’s just as safe and even more efficient…or so Uber tells us. 😐
My 17 year old neighbor doesn’t drive because of his epilepsy.
I agree – I wouldn’t let my 16 year old take a taxi (or uber) by herself. EVER. ANYWHERE. It’s not about shaming the victim to point this out. If my 16 year old daughter is going to Starbucks she’s going with a group of friends and either one of the girls is driving or a parent is driving. No one gets left behind to take a taxi by themselves.
Different worlds l guess.
People in New York City almost never drive. Kids in NYC have been taking the subway since they were much younger than 16. Cabs if they can afford it and for special circumstances.
I started taking taxis by myself at 13. Genuinely asking, that’s not unusual, is it?
Not unusual, especially in cities like NY or LA.
There’s nothing that gets me like a loving Dad, and I mean the majority of Fathers love their children, but that go a little bit above, gift them with special things and take real interest in their life kinda Dad?
Completely awes me.
I’m so thankful she didn’t get in the car. God only knows if they were trolling for someone famous or just attempting to kidnap any young woman. It’s scary out there.
to be fair 99% of dads dont have access to movie props as gifts.
No snuff to regular Dad’s either. You don’t have to be a Kevin Smith but really loving your kids and willingly showing that is really amazing.
Gotta say that pic with her and the bat is adorable though, lol, poor thing.
My daughter had a particularly bad day when she was in grade 5. Her dad brought her flowers when he came home from work.
It was a beautiful moment for all of us. ❤️
That is very scary, glad she was sharp enough to see what was happening. Hope the police are able to track these guys down somehow before something seriously bad happens.
That cake is completely awesome, well done Dad!
I love that cake. It’s the nicest cake I’ve seen in a while. It wouldn’t be necessary if there weren’t any nutjobs in the world, but since there are, it’s a good cake to have:)
I’m glad she’s okay.
That happened to me. I was waiting and he pulled up and I got in thinking he was my Uber but then he stopped and started chatting to some guys in another car and then he drove down towards Voltaire and was asking me where I was going I was like aren’t you my uber and he wouldn’t answe then I asked him to let me out but the doors were locked, at the lights I got out of the car. It’s funny because I was picked up in Bastille where there are so many cops but none were there. I emailed uber because they tried to charge me a cancellation fee and they didn’t even seem to care. It was such bs. I hate G7 because they ripped me off one time but I prefer to stick with the now because at least they have their logo all over their cabs. I live in Paris of anyone doesn’t get the references.
Holy crap. Glad you got away from him!
So he unlocked the car at the lights? I don’t get your post. And did you get angry with him and ask him why he picked you up )once you were out of the car obviously)?
It’s not explicit, but I am assuming Harley did summon a Uber ride. When you ask for a Uber, it will show a picture of the driver as well as a description of the vehicle. It also shows you a GPS map tracking the vehicle as it approaches your location and most awesome of all, it gives you a real-time countdown of the arrival.
Also, there should never be a second person in the car unless you request the “Uber Pool” which means you agree to share your ride with at least one other person.
Given all that information, it should be virtually impossible for someone to get into the wrong car.
She looks like an Ellie Goulding / Bette Midler hybrid.
Glad she didn’t fall for the bait and happy that she broadcast the situation out loud so people could beware. Scary, scary stuff.
That’s terrifying. You know this isn’t the first time someone tries this, and won’t be the last. And men wonder why we are so cautious around them.
On the subject of kidnapping scams, a friend got a call yesterday and a man told her he had her (10-yr-old) kid in his car, and then after a lot of scuffling sounds she heard a kid’s voice say “help.” Then he asked what she would do. She demanded he tell her the kids name, which he wouldn’t, then said he’d start hurting the kid. She was calling the kid’s school on the other line, but it went to voicemail, so she muted her end and called the police. In the interim, he hung up. Kid was at school, fine, and they traced the phone number to Tunisia. Supposedly it’s becoming a common scam.
That happened in México a LOT about 3 or 4 years ago. In every house, cellphone you would receive that type of call, it was very scary.
This happens in Chile everyday to my coworkers. The call is about a kidnapping or accident, the police track all the mobiles but they use disposable ones. It´s frustrating. People suck.
I cannot imagine how petrified she must have been. We all need to be diligent.
I remember when I was around 14 I saw this guy struggling with his grocery bags, he looked normal a bit worn down probably in his 30’s ( at that time I thought that was old). I decided to help him cross the street ( was coming back from school) and to his front door. He was very polite throughout this time, but as soon as I placed one of the grocery bags just inside the front door area, he pushed me inward. I just ran out of there as if my hair was on fire, he was shouting sorry I stumbled into you.
I don’t know if it was an accident or not, but I remember the terror that came over me.
You needed to have reported that to the police!! He tried it with you, he would have tried it with others. Who knows what horrors might have been behind that door.
In the 1992 film, “Silence of the Lambs”, I have never forgotten that scene where Buffalo Bill pretended to be on crutches and had trouble loading a chair into his panel van. The girl saw him “struggling” and helped him put the chair inside the van. Once she was inside, he shoved her in and knocked her out. That was such an ordinary act that anyone of us might have performed.
Not to horrify you more, but…
That scene was actually based on Ted Bundy’s habit of wearing a cast or using crutches in order to lure girls into helping him carry his books to his car. So, yeah, that’s definitely something one should be wary of.
Yeah, it’s terrifying!! I was the victim of an attempted kidnapping at gunpoint when I was 20. (A long time ago.) Fortunately, after fighting with the attacker, which seemed like forever but was actually only a minute or two, I got away. That kind of trauma lasts a long time, at least for me, it has.
I always tell people these days, especially women, that if you feel something’s wrong in your gut, it probably is. I didn’t listen to mine and that sh*t happened. I would not wish something like that on anyone!
I completely agree with you follow your intuition.
I did tell my parents when I got home, they contacted the police, to be honest they didn’t seem bothered, a lot of eye rolling. I was made to feel like I was a nuisance.
Good for you, that you fought back abd escaped.
I actually realised something during that time, that you are you’re best weapon physically and mentally.
That’s the kind of thing Ted Bundy would do to get victims.
Ridiculous to be paranoid. Uber gives you a PICTURE of your driver as well as the color and make of their car. Puhlease.
This doesn’t make a ton of sense because the app tells you what car your driver will be in and the plates AND a pic of your driver. Did she happen to be waiting for a Jeep Uber at the time?
At any rate, I’m happy she’s safe! But I am confused.
I think her account is more of a PSA– that there are these guys out there trying to pull a terrifying Uber scam– not necessarily that she was really in danger of falling for it (for the reasons you pointed out). There are a lot of people who are new to the service and/or just very naive, and this kind of message serves as a sort of wake-up call to be on high alert (and to know what to look out for, re: Uber info matching car/driver info). Those guys are probably driving around taking their chances that anyone standing on a curb with their phone out might be waiting for an Uber car, and trying to pull the fraud on them. Chances that someone might fall for it are slim, but still probable. That’s scary. I hope those guys are caught.
All the tweens and teens use user where we live, including mine. They even had a free service to the local mall for a few months due to parking construction. The mall had an uber contract for customers and with so many schools and an upscale area here, the kids used it non stop.and were creative about getting to other places from the mall as well.
Actually some kids have accounts and their parents fund it like a driver. I thought 5th 6th and middle school kids was kind of young tbh, but high school seems fine. My teen took it as part Of a group starting in 8the grade. I am surprised that people are surprised that teens use uber actually. LOL Maybe it’s more of a so cal thing and hasn’t taken hold elsewhere as far as kids and uber. (I’m in so cal though not LA)
I was living in SF when the whole Uber/Lyft started, & let me tell you everyone uses them. It’s more convenient getting around the city then waiting for a bus. My godmother lives in SD so I took Uber from her house to the mall (also noted I’m a very bad driver). I’m now living on the East Coast & let me tell you not a lot of people know what Uber/lyft is. I had to explain it to my family that it’s completely normal, but they seemed not to fully trust something like that. At least in here, you have to drive for sure, so Uber/Lyft might not be as popular here.
I’ve never taken an Uber. If I’m going to the airport, I call the same taxi I’ve been using for years. I mean it’s the same married couple. They’re experienced drivers, always reliable and I feel safe.
Ive never used Uber but everyone at ny uni swears by it.