The ‘My Name is Jeff’ meme is an enduring phrase spoken by Channing Tatum‘s character, Greg Jenko, in the 2014 film, 22 Jump Street.
Where did the ‘My Name is Jeff’ meme come from?
The ‘My Name is Jeff’ meme comes from a scene in 22 Jump Street, the sequel to 21 Jump Street. In the scene, Tatum‘s character Police Officer Greg Jenko is undercover with partner Morton Schmidt, played by Jonah Hill. The two are surveilling a Hispanic gang.
Why does Channing Tatum say ‘My Name is Jeff’?
Flustered when the gang members ask his name, Jenko produces an awful, clearly fake foreign accent to try to act natural. When he says, “My name is Jeff,” the line lands so unnaturally that it tickled audiences.
As people saw the movie, the moment hit the internet as a standout. It wasn’t long until it made its way to social media, where it began to go viral—and haunt anyone named Jeff.
Channing Tatum’s reaction to the meme
In a recent interview with CinemaBlend, Channing Tatum talked about the moment…with a journalist named Jeff.
“It’s weird what happens in pop culture,” he says. The remark came during an interview with his co-star Naomi Ackie about their film, Blink Twice.
He references ‘My Name Is Jeff’ as an example, explaining, “It’s such a small moment in the movie. Like I remember we did a table read and it wasn’t even that funny at the table read. It was like, whatever, and then all of the sudden, man, just like…”
Tatum then jokes that he hears the line every time he goes through TSA, at which point the interviewer named Jeff also confirms he gets it all the time.
Meme examples
