The Pokémon Company has formally pushed back on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security‘s use of footage and music from its animated series in a recent video promoting the Trump administration’s ongoing ICE raids.
The video in question was posted Monday on the DHS’ official X account. It showed blurred footage of ICE raids and immigrant arrests while also intercutting clips from the “Pokémon” animated series.
The entire video was set to that show’s theme song and featured the central refrain of, “Gotta catch ’em all!”
Not only did the DHS use the song in the aforementioned video, but it also captioned its X post with the tune’s iconic slogan — and the Pokémon Company appeared less than pleased.
The video sparked immediate outrage online, especially from “Pokémon” fans, who were horrified to see the franchise’s music and footage used in such a manner. The Pokémon Company has since responded to both the DHS’ use of its copyrighted material and fans’ concerns.
“We are aware of a recent video posted by the Department of Homeland Security that includes imagery and language associated with our brand,” the company said in a statement Wednesday. “Our company was not involved in the creation or distribution of this content, and permission was not granted for the use of our intellectual property.”
As of this writing, the DHS’ X account has not taken down the video, and the Pokémon Company has not given any signal that it will — as some fans have suggested — pursue legal action over the matter.
In fact, the Pokémon Company’s former chief legal officer, Doug McGowan, told IGN in an interview published Tuesday that he does not expect the company to put itself in direct conflict with the Trump administration.
“I don’t see them doing anything about this for a few reasons,” McGowan revealed. “Think of how little you see [The Pokémon Company International]’s name in the press. They are INSANELY publicity-shy and prefer to let the brand be the brand.”
“Many of their execs in the USA are on green cards,” McGowan added, referring to the Pokémon Company’s leadership. “Even if I was still at the company, I wouldn’t touch this, and I’m the most trigger-happy CLO [Chief Legal Officer] I’ve ever met. This will blow over in a couple of days and they’ll be happy to let it.”
Gotta Catch ‘Em All. pic.twitter.com/qCvflkJGmB
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) September 22, 2025
This is not the first time this week that the Department of Homeland Security has run into trouble online for its social media posts. Late Tuesday, comedian and podcaster Theo Von also called out the government agency over using footage of him in a video intended to promote ICE’s immigration raids and deportations.
“Yooo DHS I didn’t approve to be used in this,” Von wrote on X. “I know you know my address so send a check. And please take this down and please keep me out of your ‘banger’ deportation videos. When it comes to immigration my thoughts and heart are a lot more nuanced than this video allows. Bye!”
The video that Von took issue with, notably, appears to have been subsequently taken down.
