Evil Kermit is a captioned-image meme in which Kermit the Frog faces a cloaked, darker version of himself who tells him to do something lazy, selfish or indulgent. The caption follows a two-line “me: / me to me:” pattern, and the meme spread on Twitter from November 6, 2016.
Origin
- March 2014: Muppets Most Wanted was released in North America on March 21. In it, Kermit is ambushed by Constantine, “the world’s number one criminal who bears a striking resemblance to Kermit the Frog,” who takes Kermit’s place on the Muppets’ world tour. Constantine was performed by Matt Vogel.
- November 6, 2016: Twitter user @aaannnnyyyyaaaa posted a screenshot of Kermit standing next to his cloaked double with the caption “me: sees a fluffy dog / me to me: steal him.” Know Your Meme reports it gained over 31,800 likes and 22,500 retweets within 10 days.
- November 7–14, 2016: Copycat tweets followed about skipping class, spending saved money and arguing with a boyfriend. On November 14, Twitter launched a Moments page titled “Evil Kermit wants you to indulge in your vices,” and PopSugar and Cheezburger covered the trend.
- November 15–16, 2016: BuzzFeed published a listicle of examples, and the Daily Dot wrote that the meme “speaks to our baser instincts.”
Know Your Meme describes the cloaked figure as Constantine “dressed as a Sith Lord from Star Wars,” which is why the double reads as a dark-side version of Kermit.
How It’s Used
The first line is the sensible thought; the second is the temptation. The Daily Dot noted the format is also known as “other me” or “me to me,” and described it as “our naughty subconscious egging us on, be it to make bad decisions or go a little bit harder than normal.” Early examples were about food, studying, drinking and spending: small self-sabotage voiced by an inner villain.
The Format, With Real Examples
Copyable template:
me: [the responsible thing you intend to do]
me to me: [the indulgent thing you actually want]Three early examples, as quoted by Know Your Meme and the Daily Dot:
| Posted | Account | Caption |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 6, 2016 | @aaannnnyyyyaaaa | me: sees a fluffy dog / me to me: steal him |
| Nov 14, 2016 | @caitlynsayshii | *every time I pass chick fil a* me: I don’t need it / me to me: you need it |
| Nov 15, 2016 | @ericabaguma | Me: Wow I’m getting so much studying done / Me to me: you deserve a 20 hour break |
Notable Variations
- Evil Miss Piggy (November 2016): On November 17, an Instagram user posted a photoshopped version with Miss Piggy in place of Kermit, and Evil Miss Piggy edits spread on Reddit over the following days.
- Evil Jungkook (May 2018): On May 14, 2018, the YouTube channel ibighit posted the teaser for BTS’s “Fake Love,” which ends with member Jungkook facing a cloaked figure. Fans posted side-by-side comparisons with Evil Kermit the same day, and the Daily Dot covered it on May 17.
For another Kermit reaction meme, see #KermitSippingTea.