![]() "TikTok seems to be kind of how they figure out what the happenings are, right? So maybe that would have been a teen magazine or, you know, some type of teen show on TV. But the way it is now communicated may be. Grygiel added that the spreading of a message or a trend wasn't a new concept. "Their algorithms kind of sync up with their peer groups, getting it promoted through a moment like you would see on Twitter or like a trend." You know, sometimes social media ends up functioning like a big water cooler." "I think it leads to that type of participation. "They got exposed to it because they're all seeing TikTok and so they aware of it," Grygiel said. Grygiel sees the trend as an endless, accessible feedback loop for the teens watching and those that might want to join in. In other words, it's a perfect storm for an opportunity at virality. "Everything is highly memetic," said Jennifer Grygiel, an associate professor of communications at Syracuse University, who is an expert in social media and memes. The video is overlaid with text that expresses their simple request: "22 tickets for Minions: Rise of GRU Tried to ban the suits, nah #minions #yeat #suits ♬ Rich Minion - Yeat ![]() Some pictured towards the end of the procession clutch small Minion plushies while looking straight ahead. In one video that received nearly 170,000 likes and more than 1 million views, a large group of more than 20 smartly dressed teenage boys in Singapore ascend in a line on an escalator and then walk out of frame, stone faced and with rigid posture. The film reportedly grossed an estimated $164 million domestically in its first week. However, once they became memes, it changed the world in more. They have one or two eyes, and their irises are almost always brown (except for Bob, who has one green and one brown eye ). They are depicted as being roughly one-third to one-half the height of humans but they were later revealed to be 3 feet 7 inches (1.1 m) tall. They have dubbed themselves the #gentleminions, gaining a collective 65.4 million views from the hashtag on TikTok alone.Īside from social media prevalence, the trend may have something to do with Rise of Gru enjoying huge box office success since its release last weekend. Remember Despicable Me It was a delightful enough movie, featuring those cute Minions. The Minions are small, yellow capsule-shaped creatures with round gray glasses. The groups show themselves pulling up to their local movie theaters in full suits, dress shirts, and sometimes sunglasses, and carrying themselves with an aura that feels part businessman, part Secret Service, with a dash of self-awareness. ![]() Since the dawn of time, the trends and styles of the youth have never failed to perplex their predecessors - and the latest viral trend of the "gentle minions" is no exception.įollowing the July 1 release of Minions: The Rise of Gru, hordes of (mostly) teenage boys have documented themselves online as they orchestrate viewing events at movie theaters in their finest 8th grade graduation garb. ![]() There are dozens of viral videos on TikTok showing teens participating in the #gentleminions Screenshots by NPR ![]()
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