Where Did The 'Perhaps' Cow Come From? The Origin Of The 'Barnyard' Meme Explained

Barnyard was an animated film released back in 2006 that seemed destined for failure, but in actuality earned more than double what it cost to make.

The film's loose plot and questionable CGI animation led to the film being critically panned almost instantly upon release, but the internet still managed to generate an ironic cult following around the film.

Various characters from Barnyard have become fixtures in memes over the years, from a fat rat named Biggie Cheese to the incompetent Dr. Pig, but none hold sway over the film's protagonist Otis, who is voiced by Kevin James.

In the 2010s, an image of Otis the cow smirking alongside text that reads "Perhaps" became an image macro meme. Here's how it happened.

Where Did The Animated Cow Saying 'Perhaps' Meme Originate?

The German-American animated film Barnyard premiered in the United States on August 4th, 2006. The movie follows Otis, a cow who loves to sing and dance, as he takes care of his barnyard friends after being placed in an unexpected position of great responsibility.

In one scene of the movie, Otis is shown to be playfully teasing the mailman by dancing and making faces behind his back, and straightening up when he turns around.

The first time the frame of Otis smirking was used in memes was nearly ten years after the film's release, when the Facebook page funnylookingdog posted a 4-panel meme in 2017 using Otis's face as the punchline.

How Is The 'Perhaps' Cow Used In Memes?

The "Perhaps" Cow became a popular reaction image on Reddit and other social networking sites in the latter half of the 2010s, often being used as a punchline for edgy memes.

Later memes played with the image of Otis captioned "Perhaps," mixing it with other popular memes at the time and cropping and recomposing the photo for a different expression and punchline.

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