Ethel Cain is many things: A talented songwriter. A trans icon. A prolific poster. But one thing she’s not is a bad shot — or at least, that’s what Mia Khalifa thinks.

Why is Khalifa, a former adult film star turned influencer, commenting on Cain’s marksmanship? The assassination attempt on Donald Trump, of course. Ever since the former president was nearly shot at a rally on Saturday, the internet’s been abuzz with memes and discourse. Prior to the shooter’s identity being revealed, that included speculation (and jokes) about who might have pulled the trigger.

That’s where Khalifa’s Cain commentary comes in. After the attempted assassination, she posted, “It wasn’t Ethel Cain, she wouldn’t have missed,” on X.

Though Khalifa’s statement was shocking in itself, fans of both seemed more gagged that Khalifa even knows Cain’s name. “Mia Khalifa knows who Ethel Cain is… what a world we live in,” one person marveled, catching Khalifa’s attention.

“Of course I do,” Khalifa replied. “I turn her framed photo on my bedside around every time I sleep [with] a man so she doesn’t judge me for being bi.”

The interaction went viral in itself, with one post calling for it to be hung in the Louvre getting more than 100,000 likes.

But back to the matter at hand: Why would Khalifa mention Cain in this context to begin with? Beyond Cain’s rural background and aesthetic (and thus, the many times she’s posed with firearms), she also infamously wrote “we need to bring back assassinations” on Instagram in May of this year, a connection many of her fans made alongside Khalifa.

Of course, Cain didn’t actually have any connection to Saturday’s events. But Khalifa’s joke about her does open the door for a formal crossover between the two — though what that might look like is anyone’s guess.

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