What Is The 'Friend Inside Me' Meme And How Does It Relate To 'Deltarune?' The Viral 'Creepy Woody' Memes Explained

Social media has been taken over by a viral meme starring everyone's favorite animated cowboy Woody from Toy Story, but unlike the film itself, this meme is anything but wholesome.

The meme, known as Friend Inside Me, puts a very creepypasta-like spin on the beloved character. But did you know it stems from a Deltarune: Chapter 3 fan theory and was indirectly started by the game's creator Toby Fox? Here's what you need to know.

What Is The 'Friend Inside Me' Meme?

Back in 2019, Toby Fox, creator of hit games like Undertale, Deltarune and Deltarune: Chapter 2, posted a funny remix of Randy Newman's song "You've Got a Friend in Me" to Tumblr. The remix takes the song, which originates from Toy Story, and remixes it to make Newman sing "Friend inside me" in a much creepier way than you might expect.

The song went viral on Tumblr and continued to spread over the following years, inspiring remixes. Then, in 2023, YouTuber SpookyDood posted a video theorizing that the song might be hinting towards a secret boss in Fox's upcoming game Deltarune: Chapter 3. The YouTuber theorizes that there will be a Woody-like boss in the game and that the song, or a version of it, might be the boss's theme, with the theory being entirely based on a newsletter about the game sent out by Fox. The theory has since become known as the "Woody Theory."

How Is 'Friend Inside Me' Used In Memes?

The Woody Theory spread far across the Deltarune fandom throughout 2023 and continues to spread in 2024, with some believing it and some finding it far too speculative. Regardless, in December 2023, an X user named @friendinsideme_ started posting creepy memes referencing the "Friend Inside Me" song, often sharing them without context under unrelated posts and memes. The memes generally feature distorted, creepily-edited images of Woody alongside the phrase.

The X user has been posting these memes for months and has inspired others to do the same thing. The memes take the creepy depictions of Woody and insert them into other memes or images, often working the phrase "friend inside me" somewhere in the meme. Since then, the black-and-white, creepy Woody has taken on the name "Friend" and, beyond memes, has inspired fan art, video edits and more as the Woody Theory spreads alongside it.

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For the full history of "Friend Inside Me," be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.