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What Is A Gigachad? The Mysterious Meme Man Explained
We've discussed the phenomenon of Chads before here on Know Your Meme. As we've explained, a "Chad" was once a derogatory term before it became a joking nickname for the imagined pinnacle of masculinity and confidence.
But in the dark corners of the internet, you hear whispers of an even manlier, godlike figure wielding his inhuman testosterone levels over betas everywhere. We speak, of course, of Gigachad.
Unlike Chad, a nickname that could be applied to anyone, "Gigachad" first referred to one supposedly real person — Ernest Khalimov, a male model who appeared in an art project photoshoot by Krista Sudmalis with his unbelievable amount of abs and muscles on display for all the world to see.
Here, we'll run through the history of Khalimov (if that is his real name) and his presence online as the Gigachad, as well as other similar images that followed in his wake.
Where Did Gigachad Come From?
As we know, Gigachad first appeared in a photoshoot by Russian photographer Krista Sudmalis in the mid-2010s. He then began popping up on bodybuilder forums and 4chan in 2017, where commenters there were shocked at his ridiculously toned body.
There's more to the story regarding whether or not the Gigachad displayed in the photo is in fact a real human being, but for now, know that this is how the meme "Gigachad" character got its start.
How Is Gigachad Used In Memes
Gigachad has appeared in numerous memes as a hyperbolically superior character to other men. His most prevalent meme is Average Fan vs. Average Enjoyer, in which he and other ubermensches represent the "correct" way to enjoy media as "enjoyers" as opposed to ugly, wimpy "fans."
Iranian influencer Saman Ghasemzadeh also appeared in a plethora of "Average Fan vs. Average Enjoyer" memes, one of the first times the Gigachad label was given to another person.
A third Gigachad, model Batyr Suleymanov, also photographed by Krista Sudmalis, became the face of the Refuses to Elaborate Further meme, which depicts saying something inflammatory and refusing to expand as peak "Gigachad" behavior.
Is Gigachad A Real Person? Know Your Meme's Investigation Into Gigachad's Identity
In 2021, we did a deep investigation into Ernest Khalimov and found significant circumstantial evidence to suggest the man did not exist but was rather a digital art project concocted by Krista Sudmalis. The full video detailing our findings is below, but the general gist is that Sudmalis used five models for her "Sleek N Tears" project, and while the other four are confirmed to be real people, "Khalimov" is suspiciously absent from the internet and largely reclusive.
We suspect the model known as Khalimov is a digital creation concocted from pictures of other men, perhaps as a tribute to Sudmalis' father, and that any posts from Khalimov on social media may have been written by Sudmalis herself — though no 100 percent evidence of this has ever come to light.
How Can I Use Gigachad In A Meme?
Whether you're using Khalimov or a similar Gigachad character, you'll want to employ the meme as a method of jokingly showing your way of reacting to a situation or piece of media is similar to others. While the Gigachad is intimidating, he has taken on a Himbo-ish quality in memes, as his perceived superiority often comes from not thinking very critically. This has made Gigachad a meme similar to meme characters such as U Mad, as it's use to troll the opposition to a debate for thinking too much about the topic at hand.
For the full history of Gigahad, be sure to check out our entry on the character here for even more information.