Stop me if you’ve seen this image before: A red and brown monkey puppet, looking off to the side nervously in one frame and straight ahead in the next. It’s almost universally relatable—and therefore perfect as a meme. In fact, it goes by two different names: The monkey meme and the monkey puppet meme. (Some even know it as the awkward monkey puppet meme.)
In one frame, he avoids eye contact—almost looking scared or nervous. In the second photo, he casts a sideways glance toward the camera. Since it went viral, this awkward monkey puppet has become a perfect meme for any awkward situation where the poster doesn’t want to draw attention to themselves.
But where did this meme come from? And how did it go viral in the first place?
Monkey puppet meme: Where did the monkey meme originate?
The monkey, named Kento, is originally from the Japanese children’s TV show Ōkiku naru Ko (Children Growing Up.) But according to Know Your Meme, the show aired well before the internet was even a thing. The show went into reruns in Latin America in the 1980s and 1990s and snippets of it were later uploaded to both YouTube and Reddit.
Interestingly enough, the awkward side-eye glance is not from the original show, and was instead created in Photoshop in 2016. While the meme was already popular in Spanish-speaking parts of the world, it didn’t go viral in the U.S. until 2019—after the photos of Kento made waves on Reddit and Tumblr.
Since then, it’s secured its spot as a go-to reaction GIF for everyone.
What does the meme even mean?
The meaning of the monkey puppet meme can vary, but it’s primarily used as a reaction image. Depending on the photo used and the context, the image could be intended to convey the poster’s shock, confusion, sadness, or discomfort.
The subtext of the monkey meme, however, is more about flying under the radar. It can also be used when a subject finds himself privy to information that could expose them to embarrassment or unpleasantness. This is evinced by the photo’s double frame. In the first image, Kento nervously looks toward the camera. In frame two, he makes his best effort to conceal his nervousness.
Can I see a few examples of the meme in real time?
Of course! A few websites have a handful of examples of the meme readily available. But we’ve pulled some recent(ish) posts from X as well.
when you find out your daily lifestyle is actually called “quarantine” pic.twitter.com/oPEFak09Ob
— chazbot 🤖 (@charlieamber94) March 16, 2020
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 30, 2023
You can also generate your own version of the meme here.
Have brands used the meme, too?
Yes! Perhaps the most notable example of this happened back in 2020, when Xbox posted the meme to its X account.
— Xbox (@Xbox) September 8, 2020
👀 Let’s make it official!
— Xbox (@Xbox) September 8, 2020
Xbox Series S | Next-gen performance in the ˢᵐᵃˡˡᵉˢᵗ Xbox ever. $299 (ERP).
Looking forward to sharing more! Soon. Promise. pic.twitter.com/8wIEpLPVEq
For context, in September of that year, the Xbox Series S leaked for the world to see. Rather than ignore the leak, Xbox’s X account reacted by posting the Monkey Puppet meme to its account. It later confirmed the leak and promised fans that it would follow up with more information.
As you can see, the brand was able to turn a potentially devastating PR crisis into a hilariously viral moment. And their efforts didn’t go unnoticed, either: XBox later won an award at The Shorty Awards for the best use of an original meme.
Who Photoshopped Kento’s eyes—and why?
According to Know Your Meme, Dani Flores, a content creator based in Peru, created the meme. Flores said he found the original Kento meme in 2016 and “loved it.” That led him to create what we now know as the awkward Monkey Puppet meme.
“In this vignette, I wanted to represent a person who was discovered by his ‘crush’ while he was watching,” he said. “But when designing it, I realized that the fact that the character turned his face was not enough to be funny, it was necessary for the character to return the view ‘secretly,’ because it is a very human action with which we identify. That’s what makes it funny, that was the ‘punchline’ that turned it into a joke.”
Flores said that he first uploaded the meme online in 2016 and “the rest is history.”
