Minion memes have been an internet staple for more than a decade, but TikTok has recently been flooded with bizarre videos showing a crucified Minion, alongside earnest speeches about Jesus Christ’s crucifixion.
TikTokers began responding to those videos by creating their own, satirical versions of crucified Minions, and spamming comment sections with phrases from the videos.
What Is TikTok’s ‘Crucified Minion’ Meme?
The sight of a Minion dying for our sins isn’t new, as the little yellow goofballs have been inserted in all sorts of odd Facebook memes and ironic posts over the years (the internet always loves to blend the sacred and absurd).
The recent explosion of crucified Minion memes, however, appears to have been sparked by Christian influencers looking to get the attention of scrolling social media users.
Most of the videos see TikTokers reusing the exact same script, adding to the eeriness of the trend.
The Christian TikTokers introduce their videos by claiming that the crucified Minion image was created by an animator who was “messing around one day” (it’s vaguely implied that the image manifested itself, to some degree).
They go on to remind the viewer that “a Minion didn’t die for you. A Minion didn’t pay the price of sin for you and me that we deserve. But Jesus did.”
The Christian TikTokers conclude that “Jesus loves you,” before urging believers to subscribe and share their content.
The spread of the strange, repetitive videos prompted commentators to wonder if the “Dead Internet Theory” was to blame, speculating that the trend was being perpetrated by bots, who could be creating, sharing and commenting on the videos.
Others took the opportunity to crack jokes and make memes.
Where Did The ‘Crucified Minion’ Memes Come From?
The original script and idea appears to have come from TikTok pastor @pastorjoshpan, who posted the first crucified Minion video in May, inspiring a wave of imitators.
One of the most common images used in the crucified Minion videos appears to be AI-generated, but was actually created by digital artist Américo Cruz, who posted a 3D rendering of a Minion pinned to a cross on Facebook in 2021.
Before AI-generated abominations like “Shrimp Jesus” took over the site, Facebook used to be something of a hub for Minion memes, with those often-bizarre memes inspiring satirical posts from younger, savvier internet users.
The crucified Minion memes follow a similar pattern, as the initial wave of earnest posts was followed by a surge of satirical videos and commentary mocking the trend.
Many TikTokers created videos attempting to explain the crucified Minion meme, and some TikTokers even made videos poking fun at those explainer videos, their comment sections filled with phrases from the original videos, such as “a Minion didn’t die for you.”
The whole phenomenon is extremely confusing to stumble upon, and at first glance, does indeed seem as though the internet is being eaten alive by generative AI and chatbots.
It’s all organic, just a big in-joke, sparked by an unusual strategy from Christian influencers who assumed that the crucified Minion posts would increase engagement.
Judging from TikTok’s response, they were correct.
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