Internet users have been likening men to rodents. How do men respond to this comparison?
The phenomenon started with a few innocent social media posts comparing Mike Faist, co-star of the steamy tennis throuple movie "Challengers," to a dormouse. The analogy evolved into unusual levels of detail: He's a field mouse. No, he's a cartoon mouse. No, he's Despereaux (the wide-eared mouse from the 2008 animated film "The Tale of Despereaux"). No, he's Stuart Little, if Stuart Little were good-looking. One writer said he was "similar to if a sleepy cartoon mouse showed up and started doing CrossFit."
Soon, fans on social media began scrutinizing the facial features of other male celebrities for similar rodent likeness – Faist's "Challengers" co-star Josh O'Connor, for example. Barry Keoghan. Timothée Chalamet. Jeremy Allen White. Glen Powell. The list goes on. From chinchillas to capybaras, the rodent comparisons raced across social media like a speeding wheel of cheese, altering the image (and likely the self-esteem) of numerous famous young white male actors.
On June 2, a Daily Mail article revealed this internet meme to the general public. "How 'hot rodent' men became Hollywood's sexiest heartthrobs: Gen Z fans are going wild for actors with distinct features including Barry Keoghan, Kieran Culkin, and Jeremy Allen White," read the headline. The trend has since been covered by the New York Times, the Guardian, the London Times, NBC, and the Today Show, among others.
So, how do these attractive stars – the current heartthrobs – feel about being classified as "hot rodents"? Powell, who was the first to be likened to a rodent in 2023, has taken the comparison in stride. "This is why the internet is a great place," he said on the Jimmy Fallon Show last December. "I've embraced the capybara thing now. I am the capybara."
Although attempts were made, CNN didn't receive a response from O'Connor, Chalamet, Keoghan, or White. (Faist's agent, though, confirmed that the performer doesn't use social media.) But on a larger scale, the informal survey of regular folks – or should it be regular rats? – CNN contacted found most weren't bothered by being dubbed rodents.
One 20-something admitted the term would "hurt" slightly, while another said he'd be happy to embrace "hot rat summer." A third male surveyed, who had previously been called a "rat boy" by his current girlfriend, stated, "She's still with me. So, I've taken it well."
Likewise, Gustav, a 22-year-old X user, is also a target of the mouse meme. (He was specifically compared to Stuart Little.) "I'd say I primarily found the remark amusing," he told CNN via X. "It was clearly not intended as an insult, and even though some people may perceive it as an insult, I mainly felt it was a way of saying that I was adorable."
Although this research doesn't completely cover the subject, it seems that most men are okay with the "hot rodent" craze. However, if there's any male actor finding it difficult to handle the lightning-fast shift from regular hunk to furry idol, perhaps the Chinese zodiac – which views rats as most smart, popular, and lovable animals in the 12-year cycle – might provide some solace.
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Despite the widespread comparison of men in Hollywood to various rodents, many of the affected actors, such as Timothée Chalamet and Jeremy Allen White, remain silent on the matter. However, in the spirit of embracing their new "hot rodent" status, a 22-year-old X user named Gustav finds the comparison amusing and sees it as a complement, stating, "I mainly felt it was a way of saying that I was adorable." This alternative perspective on style and beauty could potentially shift the focus away from traditional human standards.
