Man who went viral for remaining seated, eating appetizer as White House dinner chaos unfolded speaks out

The man who went viral for remaining seated and continuing to eat his burrata salad at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner has been identified as Michael Glantz, a top agent at Creative Artists Agency.

The New York Times spoke to Glantz after several videos were shared of him continuing to snack on his appetizer as President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and cabinet officials were evacuated from the dinner after gunshots rang out after a shooter breached the hotel.

“I’m a New Yorker,” he told the Times. “We live with sirens and activity happening all the time. I wasn’t scared. There are hundreds of Secret Service agents hurtling themselves over tables and chairs, and I wanted to watch.”

“A lot of people said, ‘Why didn’t you get on the floor? Everybody else at your table and in the room was on the floor,’” he told the outlet.

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Glantz also said he had a bad back and that he was concerned with hygiene, so he didn’t want to touch the floor.

“First of all, I have a bad back. I couldn’t get on the floor, and if I did get on the floor, they’d have to bring in people to get me off the floor. And No. 2, I’m a hygiene freak. There was no freaking way I was getting in my new tux on the dirty Hilton floor. It was not happening.”

CNN’s Christiane Amanpour identified the man as her agent in a post to X.

“Calm, collected and carrying on in a scary crisis, my super cool agent Michael Glantz,” she wrote. “So glad everyone made it safely out of that ballroom.”

Amanpour also said Glantz was Wolf Blitzer’s agent in a follow-up post to X.

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CNN’s Brian Stelter identified Glantz on X on Saturday as well.

“CAA super-agent Michael Glantz is the man eating his salad in this viral video,” he wrote.

Trump, first lady Melania Trump and the rest of the president’s cabinet were rushed from the head table after reports of gunfire at the Washington Hilton. The site of the Washington Hilton was also the location of the assassination attempt against President Ronald Reagan in 1981.

Cole Allen, 31, from Torrance, Calif., is the man accused of opening fire at the event.

The suspect is in custody as authorities continue to investigate a motive for the shooting.

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Trump announced last month that he accepted the invitation to attend this year’s dinner, explaining that the country’s 250th anniversary influenced his decision.