Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime buzz: Who’s the child, and Trump said what…

A moment during Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime performance prompted widespread online speculation after the artist handed a Grammy Award to a young child onstage, with some viewers questioning whether the boy was Liam Conejo Ramos, the 5-year-old who was recently detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

And then there is President Donald Trump’s very expected yet very surprising commentary on the performance. The halftime show is all the buzz on the internet right now and for more than a few reasons. Let’s look at them one by one…

The performance took place Sunday, February 8, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, during the championship game between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots. At one point in the set, Bad Bunny – born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio – paused near a stand labeled “Conejo” and presented a Grammy statuette to a child who appeared to be watching footage of the singer’s earlier Grammy acceptance speech.

Shortly after the broadcast, users on social media platform X began circulating claims that the child resembled Ramos, whose detention with his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, drew national attention last month. One post read, “BENITO GAVE HIS GRAMMY TO LIAM RAMOS? I thought it was a younger version of him. This just broke my heart.”

Other users pushed back on the speculation, suggesting the scene was symbolic rather than literal. “Not Liam Ramos,” one user wrote. “It was meant to be a young Benito – a ‘dream big’ message.”

An article by the PEOPLE magazine confirmed that the child featured in the halftime show was not Liam Ramos. According to Philip Lewis, an editor at HuffPost, the boy was a child actor named Lincoln Fox, information Lewis said was shared on the actor’s Instagram account.

BACKGROUND ON LIAM RAMOS CASE

Liam Conejo Ramos and his father were detained by ICE agents on Jan. 20 after returning home from the child’s preschool in Minneapolis. They were transported to the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas. On January 31, a federal judge ordered their release.

In the ruling, Judge Fred Biery of the US District Court for the Western District of Texas sharply criticized the government’s actions, describing the case as an example of deportation enforcement that caused unnecessary harm to a child. Ramos and his father were released and returned to Minnesota on February 1, according to footage obtained by ABC News.

POLITICAL REACTION TO HALFTIME SHOW

The halftime performance also drew political criticism from former President Donald Trump, who posted a lengthy statement condemning the show. In his message, Trump called the performance “absolutely terrible” and “one of the worst ever,” arguing that it did not reflect American values or standards of excellence.

Trump also criticised the use of Spanish throughout the performance, the choreography, and the NFL more broadly, including its new kickoff rule. He claimed the show would be praised by what he referred to as the “Fake News Media” and concluded the post with his campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again.”

HISTORIC PERFORMANCE

Despite the criticism, Bad Bunny’s appearance marked a milestone for the NFL. He became the first artist to headline a Super Bowl halftime show entirely in Spanish, delivering a performance that zeroed in on joy and cultural pride rather than overt political messaging.

The show also featured appearances by Pedro Pascal, Cardi B, Jessica Alba, Karol G, Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin, and was broadcast live on NBC.

The NFL has not commented publicly on the speculation surrounding the child actor or Trump’s remarks as of Monday.