About

Jacob Batalon CEO of Sex, also known as You Seem Chill and Jacob Batalon Saying Things, refers to a series of ironic memes based on a photograph of American actor Jacob Batalon (Ned Leeds) dressed in a grey suit and smiling. Memes in which the photograph is paired with humorous captions gained popularity in ironic meme communities in early August 2019, spreading over the following years.

In particular, the "CEO of Sex" meme and caption of Batalon garnered significant virality and maintained relevance online in the 2020s, with the meme continually reappearing and being reposted. Batalon himself also commented on the meme's virality, stating that he doesn't understand it but finds it "flattering."

Origin

Before July 31st, 2019, an unknown user created the CEO of Sex meme using a photograph of American actor Jacob Batalon in a grey suit taken at the premiere of the superhero film Spider-Man: Homecoming. Batalon notably plays the character Ned Leeds in the movie.

On July 31st, 2019, Redditor Juanisimo1999 reposted the meme to the /r/okbuddyretard subreddit^[1] under the title "HE IS THE THE CEO OF SEX," where it gained roughly 220 upvotes in seven years, with more reposts made in the subreddit in the following days.^[2][3]

Spread

In the following weeks, the photograph of Jacob Batalon, paired with humorous quotes, was used for ironic memes on Reddit, iFunny and Instagram as it spread online. The CEO of Sex caption was especially used in memes and edits, ironically depicting Batalon as a sex symbol.

On August 4th, 2019, Redditor AutobiographicalHam posted an edit to the /r/okbuddyretard^[5] subreddit adding text over the original CEO of Sex meme, garnering over 260 upvotes and 10 comments in seven years.

On August 8th, Redditor MrDorito1200 shared an edit to the /r/ontheledgeandshit^[6] subreddit showing WhatsApp messages sharing the CEO of Sex meme, titled "I'M THE CEO OF SEX," receiving over 3,000 upvotes and 50 comments in seven years.

The meme format also spread to other social media platforms in August 2019, such as Instagram.

For example, an August 11th, 2019, post by Instagram user salad.snake captioned, "Rapture is coming god will punish you," gained over 39,000 likes and 190 comments in seven years.^[4]

Over the following months and years, the CEO of Sex meme continued seeing usage as it remained prevalent in various communities, especially on Reddit.

For instance, on January 29th, 2022, a since-deleted Redditor posted a fake IMDb movie entry for a film directed by Martin Scorsese, titled "The CEO Of Sex," referencing the meme to the /r/okbuddyretard^[7] subreddit, garnering over 540 upvotes in five years.

On January 29th, 2022, Redditor R3D5KAR1337 posted a fake movie poster for a "CEO Of Sex" film starring Jacob Batalon to the /r/marvelmemes^[8] subreddit, receiving nearly 100 upvotes and 15 comments in five years.

Tom Holland and Jacob Batalon's Reactions

As the meme remained prominent online throughout the 2020s, Spider-Man actors Tom Holland and Jacob Batalon became aware of the meme, fueling its virality even further.

For example, in a March 2025 interview with Screen Rant, Jacob Batalon addressed the "CEO of Sex" meme while promoting his upcoming film, Novocaine, expressing that receiving such a title is, in his words, “an honor.”

In late June 2026, while doing promo and press tours for the new film Spider-Man: Brand New Day, a fan showed Holland the CEO of Sex meme while he was signing autographs, seemingly learning about it in that moment.

On June 27th, 2026, TikTok^[9] user vetzreacts uploaded a video showing the clip of Tom Holland being shown the meme, garnering over 115,100 likes and 270 comments in a month.

On July 28th, the official TikTok^[10] account of Entertainment Weekly (entertainment_weekly) then posted a video during a red carpet interview at the LA premiere of the movie with Holland, in which they discussed the meme, receiving over 56,000 likes and 160 comments in a day.

Also on July 28th, 2026, during the LA premiere of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the Entertainment Tonight YouTube channel shared a red carpet interview with Batalon discussing his meme, which garnered over 11,000 views, 490 likes and 50 comments in 21 hours.

During the interview, Jacob Batalon said that he had no idea what the "CEO of Sex" meme is about, but added that he's "flattered" by it.

Various Examples

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Search Interest

External References