PewDiePie calls for the end of the ‘subscribe' meme after New Zealand shooting

YouTube star Felix Kjellberg, known worldwide as PewDiePie, has officially called for an end to the "Subscribe to PewDiePie" meme.

In a video posted Sunday, the creator of YouTube's second most-subscribed channel addressed the meme and its connection to the Christchurch terror attack in March that left 50 people dead.

While livestreaming the attack on multiple mosques on Facebook, the perpetrator of the shooting could be heard saying the words, "Subscribe to PewDiePie."

It's a reference to the meme and movement formed during the nearly half-year long race to become YouTube’s most subscribed channel, a battle waged between Kjellberg and Bollywood studio T-Series. Fellow creators and supporters of Kjellberg worldwide had used the phrase as a rallying cry to help PewDiePie win the subscriber race.

Immediately following the attack in New Zealand, Kjellberg said in a now-deleted tweet that he was "absolutely sickened" to learn he had been named by the gunman in the video, but hadn't addressed it in a video post until Sunday.

"To have my name associated with something so unspeakably vile has affected me in more ways than I’ve let shown," Kjellberg said.

"I just didn’t want to address it right away, and I didn’t want to give the terrorist any more attention. I didn’t want to make it about me, because I don’t think it has anything to do with me," he added.

"To put it plainly, I didn’t want hate to win. But it’s clear to me now the 'Subscribe to PewDiePie' movement should have ended then."

It's unclear if PewDiePie's loyal fanbase will respect his decision to end the meme, or use it as an opportunity to troll further.