We are exposed to hundreds of memes on the internet on a daily basis, and many of them have become so commonplace that we have a tendency to forget that the people depicted in them are real beings, just like you and I. And despite the fact that they appear to be stuck in time within the memes, in reality, they have undergone significant change ever since the memes initially went viral.
You have arrived at the proper site if you have ever pondered what the protagonists of your favorite memes could appear to be doing in the modern world. We have put up a collection of “before” and “now” photographs featuring some of the most famous meme heroes from the past and present. You could have trouble recognizing a few of them due to their disguises. You are free to examine them!
#1 Success Kid (Sam Griner)
In 2007, Laney Griner posted a photo of her son Sam trying to eat sand on Flickr, which started the meme. The photo first became well-known as a meme with the title “I Hate Sandcastles.” This implied that the boy had just destroyed another child’s sandcastle. Apparently, Laney Griner didn’t like the context of the meme because she thought it made her son look like a bully, even though he loved building sandcastles. But then the “Success Kid” meme was made, and the woman embraced it. Since then, the picture has been used in many ads, on Hot Topic shirts, Xbox screensavers, and many other things.
#2: Side-Eyeing Chloe (Chloe)
This side-eyed girl, whose real name is Chloe, became famous when KAftC posted a video to YouTube in 2013 called “Lily’s Disneyland Surprise… AGAIN.” The video showed Chloe and her sister Lily’s reactions when they were told they would not be going to school but instead to Disneyland. You can find the girl’s Instagram account, which has nearly 600,000 followers, here!.
#3: Blinking White Guy (Drew Scanlon)
Drew Scanlon is the name of the man in this well-known meme. The GIF comes from a live stream that Drew Scanlon shot in 2013 when he worked as a video producer for Giant Bomb, a popular gaming website. During one of the team’s weekly “Unprofessional Fridays” shows, Scanlon watched editor-in-chief Jeff Gerstmann play Starbound, a two-dimensional action-adventure game. Gerstmann told the story, “I’ve been farming with my wife.” Scanlon replied with the phrase “Blinking White Guy,” which is still used today.
#4: Grumpy Cat (Tardar Sauce)
Grumpy Cat, whose real name is Tardar Sauce, became famous in 2012 when photos of her were put on Reddit. People loved Grumpy Cat’s unique look right away, and it ended up with millions of fans all over the world before it died in 2019 at the age of 7.
#5: Doge (Kabosu)
In 2013, this picture of a Shiba Inu named Kabosu became known as the “Doge” meme. Even though people said it had died, this cute dog is still alive and well. You can even follow her on Instagram!
#6: Harold Hiding The Pain (András Arató)
The meme shows a senior stock photography model named András Arató with a look on his face that looks like he is trying to hide pain. In September 2011, a stock photo with a watermark from DreamTime was posted on the Facepunch forum. This was the start of the meme. András Arató gave a TedTalk in Kyiv, Ukraine, in September 2018 where he talked about his life as a “meme-hero.”
#7: Roll Safe (Kayode Ewumi)
The meme comes from the 2016 BBC Three mini-documentary series “Hood Documentary,” in which the character played by actor Kayode Ewumi is shown pointing to his head and smiling after saying that he thinks a woman is “beautiful” because “she’s got good brains.” Kayode Ewumi is 27 years old right now.
#8: Disaster Girl (Zoe Roth)
In 2004, Dave Roth took this picture of little Zoe Roth as she watched firefighters put out a fire. The picture was in a magazine that held a photo contest and put it on the cover. The photo went viral very quickly, and Zoe said she would love for it to help her get into college.
#9: Ridiculously Photogenic Guy (ZeddieSmith)
This picture was taken in 2012 at the Cooper River Bridge Run by Zeddie Little, also known as “Ridiculously Photogenic Guys.” When Will King posted it to Reddit, it went viral and got more than 40k upvotes.
#10: Bad Luck Brian (Kyle Craven)
This photo became a meme after Ian Davies posted a yearbook photo of his friend Kyle Craven to Reddit in January 2012 with the caption “Takes driving test, gets first DUI.” Before the picture was taken, Kyle rubbed his face with a sweater to make it red and put on an annoying smile, so it looks like. Most of the time, the meme is used to talk about bad luck, embarrassing situations, or sad events.
#11: Confused Nick Young (Nick Young)
The “Confused Nick Young” meme comes from an episode of “Thru The Lens” that was filmed in 2014. The scene from which the screenshot is taken is one in which Nick’s mother says that when he was younger, Nick was “a clown.”
#12: Overly Attached Girlfriend (Laina Morris)
It was in 2012 when a YouTube user named Laina Morris uploaded a parody of Justin Bieber’s song “Boyfriend” to a contest promoting Bieber’s new perfume called “Girlfriend.” This was the seed that eventually grew into the “Overly Attached Girlfriend” meme. Laina reports that when her video went viral, she had to deal with a lot of privacy difficulties, such as admirers accessing her personal information and attempting to access her college records. This is unfortunate, as Laina says she had to deal with all of these issues. Back in 2019, she made the announcement that she will no longer produce material for YouTube.
#13: Trying To Hold A Fart Next To A Cute Girl In Class (Michael McGee)
This Michael McGee meme went viral on Reddit in 2014 after user aaduk ala posted it to the /r/funny subreddit with the caption “Trying to hold a fart next to a cute girl in class.” “Well, the guy who took the picture has been a good friend of mine since I moved to Texas,” Mike told Unilad in an earlier interview. “So he knew I could make that face whenever I wanted.” “He wanted to make a funny Twitter caption, so he told me to make the face. He put it online, and about two or three months later, it took off!”
#14: Good Luck Charlie (Mia Talerico)
Mia Talerico is featured in the “Good Luck Charlie” meme that airs on the Disney Channel.
#15: First World Problems (Silvia Bottini)
The woman depicted in the internet meme known as “First-World Problems” is the Italian actress Silvia Bottini.
