The Distracted Boyfriend meme is a single 2015 stock photo by Spanish photographer Antonio Guillem, titled “Disloyal man walking with his girlfriend and looking amazed at another seductive girl.” The image shows exactly what the title says: a man turning his head to stare at a passing woman while his girlfriend looks on in disbelief.
In 2017, someone began labeling the three figures to represent choices and temptations: the girlfriend as “something you should want,” the other woman as “something you actually want,” the boyfriend as yourself. It exploded. The format became one of the most labeled images in internet history — a universal template for expressing betrayal of priorities. Antonio Guillem now gives interviews about accidentally creating a global meme.
Leave a Reply