Coronavirus memes are spreading as the disease travels across the world — here's what they look like and why creators say they're important

CoronaMemes

Memes and TikTok videos are lightening the mood as people grapple with the realities of the coronavirus pandemic.
Sam Thullesen/Izzie Feehrer/TikTok
  • As the novel coronavirus continues to spread and the realities of the pandemic set in, people are turning to the internet for some relief.
  • Coronavirus-themed memes and TikTok videos are providing comic relief and distraction amid times of uncertainty.
  • A search for "coronavirus" on any social media platform yields Purell memes, hamster videos, and "The Office" fan fiction, among other content.
  • Creators say that using humor and art is critical in bringing people together and soothing global panic.
  • Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

As the novel coronavirus continues to spread, sickening over 163,000 people and killing over 6,000 across 146 countries, people are turning to the internet for some levity.

Between coronavirus test and Purell shortages, business and university closures, and the implementation of stringent safety measures, anxious individuals are in need of distraction from the chaos. They appear to have found a solution in coronavirus memes and videos.

A search for "coronavirus" on any social media platform yields thousands of memes seeking the humor in a tense and frightening time.

Some people are fighting feelings of isolation with "work from home" memes.

Animator Jasmine Valickis' "work from home" outfit resonated with those in quarantine.
Jazmine Valickis/Twitter

As more and more workers are confined to their homes in the wake of imposed quarantines and office shutdowns, "work from home" memes have taken over the internet.

Animator Jazmine Valickis shared her "working from home lewk" on Twitter, immediately racking up over 1,000 likes.

While she never intended the graphic to be a response to the coronavirus outbreak, the work from home aesthetic resonated with people online.

"We call this the corona staycation look," one commenter wrote.

Valickis told Insider that online content like her graphics can play an important role in calming widespread anxiety.

"I think using art and humour right now probably is one of the most comforting things in times like this, at least for me," she said. "It normalizes the situation we're in without really ignoring the concern."

Ultimately, she hopes her art and humor can offer comfort during uncertain times.

"I just want them to feel like things are going to be ok, with no matter what's going on, because that's why I draw these things for myself," she explained, "so I can feel like things will be ok, and they will!"

Freelance Illustrator Daniel Fishel also took to Twitter to express his thoughts on the new "working from home" trend.

"Using memes or GIFs can help us express how we're feeling when words fail us," he told Insider. "We can post about COVID19 using words: 'I'm upset, but it'll be ok,' or we could post a GIF of a person trying to vacuum fire instead."

While other Twitter users may not be equally convinced that things will "be ok," they are finding the humor in home-quarantine situations.

Others are adding levity to the discourse with fake conspiracy theory content.

In a TikTok video, Sam Thullesen "totally figured out" the secret to the coronavirus — and its connection to "Monsters Inc."
Sam Thullesen/TikTok

College student Sam Thullesen had the perfect idea for TikTok video when he discovered that COVID-19 was the official name of the illness caused by the coronavirus. He immediately recalled a scene from Pixar's "Monsters Inc." in which an emergency situation was referred to as a "23-19."

"I thought if I could find a way to make 'COVID' equal the number 23, then that would be a great idea for a TikTok that may potentially get some views," he told Insider.

Thullesen was correct; his video, in which he says he's "totally figured out" the novel coronavirus has been viewed 7.5 million times.

The clip, which has received 1.4 million likes, has served purposes beyond self-promotion on TikTok.

"I think in times like this, memes, videos, etc. can help to make light of the situation," Thullesen said. "I do feel that some of these memes can cross the line and become inappropriate, but when used right can help to ease people's minds and help them put things into perspective."

Purell memes are calling out item shortages and corporate greed.

As one Twitter user pointed out, Purell is the new Bey.
SaintHoax/Twitter

As a hand sanitizer and disinfectant shortages plague shoppers, people online are providing some perspective with Purell and Lysol-themed memes.

A post shared by Flamingo Feels (@flamingofeels)

People are also using humor to comment on the implications of the high demand and inflated prices.

The most popular hand sanitizer memes, however, are comparing celebrities to various brands of the disinfectant.

Chris Evans stan account @buttsandevans posted a series of memes featuring the "Captain America" star as a variety of colorful hand sanitizers.

In under a week, the thread accrued over 8,000 likes.

The account's creator said the memes are providing an important service in times of stress.

"I feel like it's actually a pretty good thing, something we need, with all the negativity going around," she told Insider. "I've had so many people quote it and say that it actually made their day."

Jennifer Lopez, Harry Styles, Lil Nas X, and Ariana Grande have also received the hand sanitizer meme treatment.

"Stan twitter likes to have a lot of humor in scary times. We are a huge group of fans of Harry's from all over the world so we're going through this together and humor can always make people feel less anxious," Lora, the Harry stan behind memes, told Insider. "So I thought my thread could make someone laugh, involve Harry, and spread awareness to keep hands clean."

Some people are creating informational (and adorable) health content.

A TikTok video from the viral account "Hamstarz" teaches viewers about the CDC's coronavirus prevention tips.
Izzie Feehrer/TikTok

Izzie Feehrer, who runs the TikTok account Hamstarz, decided to make her own video addressing the coronavirus outbreak after seeing too many TikToks that were simply inciting panic or being entirely dismissive of the pandemic.

The clip, which has been viewed 3 million times, features Feehrer's hamsters demonstrating the recommended prevention from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In the video, the furry star (named Little) acts out handwashing, using tissues, and staying home — all filmed in Feehrer's dollhouse.

Feehrer hoped her post would strike a healthy balance that she felt other TikTok videos were missing.

"I wanted to make a video that shared real advice from the CDC so that it would be informative, but I also knew that by using my hamsters it would be lighthearted and people would actually watch it and enjoy watching," she told Insider.

The college student added that creating coronavirus-themed content is acceptable as long as creators are posting accurate information and spreading positivity.

"People need that right now, and even kids need that. A good amount of my followers are young and they have anxiety about it too," she said. "I was hoping people would listen to the video and take a deep breath!"

Ultimately, Feehrer hopes that using social media and humor during a time of uncertainty can bring people together and offer comfort.

"It is not about ignoring the crisis but supporting each other through it, in whatever way we can," she said.

Of course, there's a subset of coronavirus content imagining how the pandemic would play out on an episode of "The Office."

Redditors had no trouble imagining how a coronavirus scenario would have played out in Scranton, Pennsylvania on an episode of "The Office."
NBC

Nashville-based pastor Daniel Burnell was sitting on his couch at home when he started imagining how funny a coronavirus-themed episode of "The Office" would have been.

"I caught myself laughing at my own scenarios so I thought that maybe somebody else would think it's funny too," he told Insider.

From there, "The Office: Coronavirus" was born. The original tweet, imagining how each office worker would react to the pandemic, has received nearly 467,000 likes.

"I think that humor is just as much a part of our humanity as anxiety and fear," Burnell said. "Creating and laughing together distracts the mind and comforts the soul."

The best part of his viral fame, he says, is that other people contributed to the "episode" online.

After Burnell's wife shared the tweet to the Dunder Mifflin subreddit, the storylines took off.

"Jim and Pam try to convince Dwight that Jim has it and at first Dwight doesn't care but when he sees Jim coughing and sneeze alone in the break-room, Dwight quarantines the rest of the office by locking them all in, even overnight," one Redditor added.

Fans of "The Office" weren't the only ones to take notice of the tweet — castmembers even caught wind of the new episode.

Brian Baumgartner, known to his fans as Kevin from "The Office," posted the tweet to Instagram and expressed gratitude for the distraction.

"Sometimes not only the best but the ONLY medicine is to laugh," he captioned the post. "At the end of a day which brought so much bad and depressing news – this made me feel a little bit better."

Burnell isn't the only one drawing from the show. Other "Office"-themed tweets are surfacing, most featuring Dwight Schrute's disaster preparedness.

Some content attempts to balance urgency and pop culture.

Alexsandro Palombo created informational content after seeing how the coronavirus ravaged his hometown.
Alexsandro Palombo/Instagram

Italian artist Alexsandro Palombo, who frequently uses his work to raise awareness about social issues, decided to use his talents to spread information about curbing the spread of the illness.

After seeing the emergency situation evolve in his hometown of Milan — with schools closing, shops shuttering, and hospitals collapsing under the demand for care — he decided to make informational graphics using pop icons.

"In this case, I made this series to react to an urgency, a way to alert all the people who live outside of Italy and who still do not realize the seriousness of the epidemic," he told Insider.

However, balancing pop culture, humor, and urgency is an art in itself.

"The humor about this emergency must be subtle, intelligent, thoughtful and must make you reflect," Palombo said. "And I think it's time for some deep reflection."

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