On Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014, Hugh Hefner was found dead in his apartment. He died of natural causes. However, the "Playboy" tycoon was attending a movie night with his family and his death news, that went viral, was nothing but a death hoax.

A website - nbctoday.co - posted a "breaking news" story that Hugh Hefner passed away and he was 88. Hugh Hefner death hoax report went viral on the internet. At the time of writing, the fake report got 552,000 Facebook shares, 183,000 Facebook likes and 2967 tweets.

According to the report, the Police got a call from the Playboy Mansion at 9 a.m. PDT. Los Angeles police officer Jimmy N. Gardner revealed that they will have to wait for the autopsy report before confirming the cause of death.

"From what I have heard Mr. Hefner was in good health for an 88 year old man. With no signs of foul-play we are left to believe his death was of natural causes," Gardner said to the fake website.

However, Hugh Hefner is not dead as he attended a movie night with his family. The "Playboy" founder's wife Crystal Hefner also tweeted a picture with Hugh Hefner having a good time with his family and captioned it - "Movie night with the Family."

The proof that Hugh Hefner is not dead is that he retweeted his wife's tweet and a tweet by Domineek Ellington.

I Googled @hughhefner and it said he died but still made it to movie night. Lol. The internet is an odd place sometimes.

— Domineek Ellington (@thatdudedneek) December 29, 2014

Crystal Hefner also shared a quote via her Twitter account that pointed towards Hugh Hefner's death hoax report.

A lie can run around the world before the truth has got it's boots on. #QuoteOfTheDay — Crystal Hefner (@crystalhefner) December 29, 2014

It looks like Hugh Hefner was another victim of the internet phenomenon called death hoax. The "Playboy" editor-in-chief is alive and tweeting. Fans also tweeted about the hoax report and wondered if Hefner is dead or alive.

Stay tuned for more updates as Hugh Hefner has not yet commented on the story.

Contact the writer at t.mazumdar@ibtimes.com.au.

Anna Berglund L, Hugh Hefner C, and Shera Bechard pose at the 2012 MusiCares Person of the Year tribute honoring Paul McCartney in Los Angeles, February 10, 2012
Anna Berglund (L), Hugh Hefner (C), and Shera Bechard pose at the 2012 MusiCares Person of the Year tribute honoring Paul McCartney in Los Angeles, February 10, 2012. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
Hugh Hefner, founder, editor-in-chief and creative officer of Playboy, speaks as he is honored with the Hollywood Distinguished Service Award in Memory of Johnny Grant by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce in Hollywood, California June 7, 2012.
IN PHOTO: Hugh Hefner, founder, editor-in-chief and creative officer of Playboy, speaks as he is honored with the Hollywood Distinguished Service Award in Memory of Johnny Grant by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce in Hollywood, California June 7, 2012. REUTERS/Jason Redmond REUTERS/Jason Redmond
Hugh Hefner 2nd L, founder, editor-in-chief and creative officer of Playboy, poses with community advocate Laurie Goldman L and others as he is honored with the Hollywood Distinguished Service Award in Memory of Johnny Grant in Hollywood, California
Hugh Hefner (2nd L), founder, editor-in-chief and creative officer of Playboy, poses with community advocate Laurie Goldman (L) and others as he is honored with the Hollywood Distinguished Service Award in Memory of Johnny Grant in Hollywood, California June 7, 2012. Reuters/Jason Redmond
Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner, founder, editor-in-chief and creative officer of Playboy, is honored with the Hollywood Distinguished Service Award in Memory of Johnny Grant by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce in Hollywood, California June 7, 2012. Reuters/Jason Redmond
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