Although the comedy film We're the Millers was met with mixed reviews from critics back in 2013, the internet loved Will Poulter's character Kenny, making the young actor a well-established viral meme figure with the delivery of his line "You guys are getting paid?"

Here's the story behind the memorable scene that turned into an image macro and object-labeling meme.

Where Is The 'You Guys Are Getting Paid?' Meme From?

The “You guys are getting paid?” meme originates from the comedy film, “We’re the Millers,” which was released on August 3rd, 2013. In one particular scene (shown below), members of the titular "family" (or rather, drug smugglers posing as one) accuse protagonist David Clark (played by Jason Sudeikis) of splitting the reward money unevenly among the "family," to which Kenny (played by Will Poulter) responds with "You guys are getting paid?" comedically unaware that the other members were receiving payment.

How Did The 'You Guys Are Getting Paid?' Meme Went Viral?

It took a few years for Poulter's "You guys are getting paid?" line to grow popular on the internet into a widespread meme, with its earliest iteration being posted by Redditor /u/ibarklikeashark to /r/dankmemes (shown below, left), referencing the mobile game Mafia City. A January 10th post on the subreddit by /u/TheGamerCant was the first "viral" usage of the line (shown below, right).

Will Poulter's line and funny facial expression are combined into several image macro and object-labeling memes across social media to reflect surprise about monetary gains in various contexts. For example, on March 28th, 2024, TikTok user @ifinancecanada edited the scene (seen below, left) with the text "When everyone finds everyone's salary." On July 8th, 2024, TikTok user @sparkydirect used the same clip for a "construction site" skit (seen below, right).

@ifinancecanada Tomorrow’s payday, who’s splurging on that fancy latte with their work bestie? Tag ’em! 🤑☕️ #OfficeTea #WorkBFF #NeedMyIcedCoffee #officelife #officehumor #officememes #meme #memecut #workmeme #workhumor #worklife #workmemes #youguysaregettingpaid #foryoupage #officefun #officetok #officetimefun ♬ original sound – ifinance

@sparkydirect Wait… You guys are getting paid? #Sparkydirect #Meme #MeetTheMillers #Tradie #ProjectManager #Electrician #Apprentice #Workexperiance #Sparkies #Funny #CapCut ♬ original sound – Sparky Direct

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For the full history of "You guys are getting paid?" be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.