The Most Terrifying Halloween Costume? Try Being a Human
What it really means to be an apex predator
Growing up, my all-time favorite movie was The Lion King, released just before my third birthday. A few months later, my father passed away, and that’s when I got truly obsessed with the movie. How could I not relate to Simba, a vulnerable cub suddenly left without his protecting father, Mufasa? Even now, in moments of reflection, I find myself gazing at the stars, seeking the same ethereal guidance that Simba found.
And so, as a child, I idolized lions as untouchable forces of nature — dominant, ferocious, and the most fearsome kings of the jungle, perched atop the animal hierarchy. The world seemed to agree, with lions commanding the “hierarchy of fear.”
Yet, as I grew older, I discovered that the real world doesn’t quite align with Disney movie portrayals: most lions live in open plains and grasslands, spending much of their time resting rather than ruling.
Meanwhile, global surveys revealed that we humans hunt our prey at a much higher rate than these feline predators. And this fact has reshaped the hierarchy of fear: the world’s most terrifying creature isn’t the lion.
It’s the one you see in the mirror.
