People Were Shocked to Learn the Nodding Man Meme Is Actually Robert Redford

May 2024 ยท 5 minute read

You've indisputably noticed that burly bearded man giving a nod of approval; he's all over the web. But many simply discovered that it's actually actor Robert Redford.

Robin Zlotnick - Author

You've noticed him. He's got moppy blond hair, a burly beard, and kind eyes. He does not say the rest as the camera slowly zooms in on his attractive face. And then, simply when you need it, he nods. It's a validating nod, a comforting nod, a nod that says the whole lot is going to be OK, that "ya done good, kid." He is the Nodding Man meme. 

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Unbeknownst to a lot of people in the web, he is esteemed actor Robert Redford. Now, I don't know about you, but I didn't know this. Robert Redford is usually so clean-shaven and debonair. I don't believe woodsy outdoorsman when I assume Robert Redford. He can pull off the cowboy vibe, needless to say, however like, a in reality good-looking model cowboy. You know what I imply.

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Nick Martin at Splinter News used to be the one to "break" the giant story. In a "uh, productive work channel" at the Deadspin places of work, people were making amusing of anyone for only understanding actors by means of the internet jokes about them. That's when one editor posted the nodding gif and joked that Robert Redford was once now just "the meme guy."

Obviously, this blew people's minds. Like Martin, "I have seen this meme a million times, but until today I just thought this was some pleasant lumberjack rando." It simply never crossed my thoughts that this handsome man used to be actually the handsome man, Robert Redford. 

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Reactions on Twitter were beautiful various. Some are just as shocked as you and I are that this burly manly man is actually Jay Gatsby. Others knew this reality from the starting and likewise knew that the clip that changed into the meme is from the 1972 movie Jeremiah Johnson, which is supposedly like a greater version of The Revenant. Who knew? Definitely not me.

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But the most disturbing and confusing thing about all this is that through learning that the Nodding Man Meme is Robert Redford, we also discovered there were entire swaths of the web who believed it was Zach Galifianakis. Yes, that Zach Galifianakis. From The Hangover trilogy, Baskets, and Between Two Ferns.

Never mind that Zach Galifianakis seems nothing like Robert Redford or the Nodding Man Meme.

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Look at his face! That is an absolutely different face! The eyes, the nostril, the hair... Even even though I wasn't conscious that the Nodding Man was once Robert Redford, at least I wasn't a type of insane people who concept it was Zach Galifianakis.

There are so many memes with mysterious origins that are not actually that mysterious. A quick Google search would have advised you the Nodding Man Meme was Robert Redford, but who has that roughly time? You know? 

While we are right here, I would like to explore the origins of a pair massive memes that I used to be at all times moderately keen on however never curious sufficient to actually look it up. Until now. 

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First, the crying fist pump. You've observed it. You've used the gif any time you've gotten been diminished to such uncooked emotion. But where did it come from? The CW watermark in the backside proper nook lends the only hint that this gif is from a clip from Cycle 14 of America's Next Top Model. The person crying and fist-pumping is Alasia, after learning she is secure and can proceed on the show. And now you understand.

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Next, there is the Ancient Aliens meme. You will recognize it straight away when you see this guy's face. Ancient Aliens is a History Channel display starring alien knowledgeable Giorgio A Tsoukalos, who is an actual particular person and now not a character from Tim and Eric, which is what I certainly believed was once the case for years. I mean, have a look at him. 

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Tsoukalos is an alien knowledgeable who believes โ€” for actual โ€” that extraterrestrial beings are accountable for plenty of of the unexplainable phenomenon right here on Earth. And yes, he is aware of he is a meme, and he's tremendous with it. Even honored. "I think it's a great honor to have been embraced by the interwebz, worldwide," he stated in a Reddit AMA. "I really think that it just shows that โ€” it doesn't show anything, but it shows that people embrace the show. I think it's wonderful, the fan-base, I have the best fans in the world."

So there you may have it, people. The Nodding Man Meme is Robert Redford. The crying fist pump gif is from America's Next Top Model. And the Ancient Aliens guy is a real one who actually types his hair like that and in point of fact believes that extraterrestrial beings are accountable for the Great Pyramids of Egypt. What a world we live in. 

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