Benoit Blanc

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About

Benoit Blanc is the main character of the Knives Out film franchise portrayed by actor Daniel Craig. An eccentric detective, Benoit Blanc achieved viral interest online following the release of the second film in the series, Glass Onion, achieving recognition as one Daniel Craig's iconic characters and being regarded a Tumblr Sexyman. The character also inspired Benoit Blanc In and [Benoit Blanc Voice] memes which imagined him commenting on events of various films and games.

Origin

On November 27th, 2019, the detective mystery film Knives Out premiered.^[1] The film introduced the character of Benoit Blanc, portrayed by actor Daniel Craig, an eccentric genius detective who investigates the death of the patriarch of a wealthy, dysfunctional family. In December 2022, Glass Onion: A Knives Out mystery, premiered,^[2] with Craig reprising the role (trailers for both films shown below, left and right).

In the films, Benoit Blanc is a world-famous private investigator with a Southern accent, an eloquent manner of speech and a distinguishable fashion sense. In the 2022 film, it was confirmed that Benoit Blanc is gay.

While the character did not amass a major fandom until the release of the second film, Benoit Blanc has been a subject of memes and fan art prior to December 2022. For example, on December 31st, 2019, Tumblr^[3] user ngoziu posted a fanart image that gained over 9,800 notes and reblogs in three years (shown below, left). On May 13th, 2021, Fandom tweeted^[4] an Agatha All Along meme which received over 1,600 retweets and 11,600 likes in one year (shown below, right).

Spread

On December 23rd, 2022, the detective mystery film Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery premiered on Netflix. Immediately following the release of the film on the platform, the character inspired memes, fan art and discussions dedicated to his fashion sense and his sudden popularity, primarily on Twitter and Tumblr. For example, on December 23rd, Twitter^[5] user @LoganKenny1 posted a meme about the character being gay which gained over 300 retweets and 3,600 likes in ten days (shown below, left). Also that day, Tumblr^[11] user the-breath-in-air made a post which received over14,500 likes and reblogs in ten days (shown below, right).

In late December 2022, multiple memes and fanart trends dedicated to Benoit Blanc went viral on Twitter and Tumblr, with the character achieving the status of a Sexyman on the latter platform. For example, on December 26th, Twitter^[6] user @StarmansArt posted a sketch of Blanc among the Muppets which garnered over 2,300 retweets and 18,900 likes in one week (shown below, left). Also that day, Tumblr^[7] user dapper-lil-penguin made a Family Feud meme which received over 15,000 likes and reblogs in the same period (shown below, right).

Benoit Blanc In / [Benoit Blanc Voice]

On December 27th, 2022, Twitter^[8] user @zachsilberberg posted a tweet imagining Benoit Blanc being controlled by Remy from Ratatoille and commenting on the experience in a Southern accent. The tweet received over 8,200 retweets and 66,000 likes in one week (shown below).

The tweet spawned a series of memes which imagined Benoit Blanc partaking in events of various films and games and commenting on them, with the memes copying Blanc's accent and speech mannerisms. For example, on December 28th, Twitter^[9] user @JillKrajewski posted a Twin Peaks meme that gained over 1,100 retweets and 12,200 likes in four days (shown below, left). Also that day, Twitter^[10] user @joshuathehull posted a Midsommar reference which received over 2,200 retweets and 27,300 likes in four days (shown below, right).