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A really popular trend on TikTok lately has been #SnailTok, or #ImmortalSnailTok, the bizarre niche of videos that focus on a mysterious snail assassin that tracks you down thousands, even millions of years in the future.
But why is TikTok all of a sudden obsessed with a hypothetical snail assassin? Where did this TikTok snail meme come from?
Don’t worry – this article has all the answers!
Read on for a quick overview of the Immortal Snail TikTok trend, featuring the meme’s origins, how the trend started on TikTok, and more.
What Exactly is the Immortal Snail Assassin Trend on TikTok?
If you haven’t yet had the chance to dive headfirst into this bizarre side of TikTok, let us catch you up to speed.
Long story short, this broad trend makes reference to a mysterious snail, usually in the context of a confrontation thousands/millions of years in the future, showing absurd scenarios where it manages to track you down, or using a video game clip to depict the confrontation.
Many of the viral snail TikToks use the following format: a text overlay that says “The year is [insert far away year, usually thousands of years in the future]” then showing/describing the scenario in which you and the immortal snail finally meet.
Sometimes a video meme format is used (e.g. a clip from a video game or movie is used) or some creators choose to act out their own snail confrontations.
The meme has become so popular that there are now other TikToks that simply make reference to the snail, how the creator would handle the snail, or just make fun of the absurdity of the trend in general.
A Brief History of the Immortal Snail TikTok Trend
To understand where the Immortal Snail trend on TikTok began, we have to dig further back into Internet history.
As far as we can tell, this super random hypothetical can be traced back to this YouTube video which was posted on October 1, 2014.
In the video, they discuss the following hypothetical: “Would you take ten million dollars and you get it, but for the rest of your life, there’s a snail that’s trying to get you, and you can’t ever be touched by the snail, otherwise you’ll die.”
The video went viral, and soon variations of the question began to pop up all over the Internet… seeing random resurgences every few years.
For instance, a very similar question was reposted on Dec 16, 2016 on Reddit here. In this version, the question is: “You and a super intelligent snail both get 1 million dollars, and you both become immortal, however you die if the snail touches you. It always knows where you are and slowly crawls toward you. What’s your plan?”
Over the years, the Immortal Snail has become a fixture of meme culture, popping up again here and there… much like the assassin snail would in this strange hypothetical.
But how exactly did this immortal snail meme, which has been floating around the Internet for 7 years, suddenly go viral on TikTok?
The Original Immortal Assassin Snail TikTok
While it’s very possible (given the snail’s Internet prominence) that the immortal snail has been referenced on TikTok many times ofver the years, we looked into why the trend is suddenly viral right now.
And the earliest (recent) video we could find referencing the immortal snail is this one posted 4 days ago, which shows the question: “Will you press the button? You live forever and can’t be killed but a snail that can’t die hunts you forever and if he touches you, you die a horrible death”.
This video is also the source of the “original sound” that has been used over 3000 times for snail-related TikTok videos. A more popular version of the sound was uploaded here a day later, and has since been used over 8000 times.
Since then, the trend has exploded, with thousands of creators (including some of the platform’s biggest names) hopping on to show themselves in future battles with this snail assassin.
The Immortal Snail itself seems to even have its own account here, started only a few days ago with this ominous POV.
How to Participate in the Immortal Snail Trend on TikTok
Looking to hop on this TikTok trend yourself?
Here’s how to participate in #ImmortalSnailTok:
- Use this sound (or this more popular version of it)
- Add a text overlay with the format “The year is [insert far away year, usually thousands of years in the future]”
- Showing/describe/act out the scenario in which you and the immortal snail finally meet
You can also simply make some TikToks that reference the snail, but make sure there’s zero context to keep #ImmortalSnailTok a happy inside joke for those of us in the know.
We hope you enjoyed this guide to the Snail Assasssin TikTok Trend!
Be sure to check out our guide to current trends on TikTok for more.