Granmeme / Grandma It's Me, Anastasia

Submission 3,098

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About

Granmeme or Grandma It's Me, Anastasia is an exploitable video clip from the 1997 animated film Anastasia in which a man dressed in drag as Anastasia removes his coat and says, "Grandma it's me, Anastasia." The clip became the subject of edits on YouTube in October 2019, placing the character into new contexts, often different animated Disney films. In later years, it inspired videos on TikTok in which users recreate the scene.

Origin

Charmeme

Around February 4th, 2018, YouTuber Hannahhhhhh posted a now-deleted video to YouTube known as the "charmeme" in which they edited a clip of Prince Charming jumping off the edge of something. The meme gained some spread, though it didn't go viral. On February 4th, YouTuber^[1] xFrostedMoonlight posted another version of the meme, garnering over 18,600 views in four years (shown below, left). On February 12th, YouTuber^[2] Princess Meg posted a version that gained over 17,000 views in the same span of time (shown below, right).

Granmeme

On October 2nd, 2019, YouTuber^[3] xFrostedMoonlight posted a new version of the #charmeme using a clip from Anastasia in which a man is auditioning to play a fake Anastasia. The meme takes the clip, which shows the man taking off a big coat and revealing himself in the Anastasia drag, saying, "Grandma it's me, Anastasia" and places it into scenes from Hercules and Cinderella, garnering over 46,000 views in four years (shown below).

Hannah, Min, and I were taking a trip down memory lane yesterday and re-watched some of our favorite charmeme videos when Hannah suggested that we need a new one. So brainstorming began and I suggested this scene of "Anastasia" or whatever her name really is xD

Spread

The Granmeme meme spread over the following days as YouTubers applied the exploitable to new contexts. On October 2nd, 2019, YouTuber^[4] TheNight130 posted a version that gained over 140,000 views in four years (shown below, left). On October 4th, YouTuber^[5] BlueHeartTattoo posted a version that gained over 390,000 views in the same span of time (shown below, right).

Later that day, YouTuber^[6] Ardea Sparx posted a version of the meme that gained over 237,000 views in the same span of time (shown below).

The meme largely fell dormant after 2019. However, throughout the 2020s, TikTokers began using the audio from the scene to recreate it. On April 15th, 2020, TikToker^[7] @caleighmac posted a video in which several people recreated the scene, garnering over 700,000 views in three years (shown below, left). On January 4th, 2023, TikToker^[8] @shiningnathan posted a recreation of the scene that gained over 320,000 views in five months (shown below, right). On June 15th, a Redditor asked about the meme on /r/OutOfTheLoop.^[9]