About

Shrek Rizz or Shrek Looking Up and Smiling refers to a clip from the 2007 animated film Shrek the Third in which the character Shrek smiles at Arthur to signify that he's okay after it appears he is stabbed. In the 2020s, Shrek's knowing smile in the scene was taken out of context and used as a reaction image, video and GIF to signify devious intent or rizz in memes.

Origin

In the climax of Shrek the Third, Prince Charming appears to stab Shrek. As Prince Charming monologues to a crowd of onlookers, Shrek smiles at a concerned Arthur and Fiona to signify he's okay (shown below).

The earliest known "rizz" edit of the clip was posted as part of the Lightskin Stare trend on November 28th, 2022m by user TikToker @shrekculture,^[3] gaining over 5,400 likes in 18 months (shown below).

Spread

Over the following year, the "rizz" clip of Shrek began seeing more use on TikTok. For example, on March 29th, 2023, TikToker Cringefest13u^[2] posted a video in which the clip was used as a punchline to a joke setting up Shrek as a very attractive man. The clip gained over 860 likes in just over one year (shown below, left).

On July 27th, TikTok user @gonjutsu^[1] posted a video that isolated the clip of Shrek smiling and played dramatic music, calling it "Rizz." The clip gained over 3.2 million likes in one year (shown below, right).

The clip has also been used as a reaction meme on other platforms, usually signifying devious intent. For example, on April 17th, 2024, Twitter / X user @Richie_Loco^[4] posted a joke about shutting down his niece's adult kitchen with the image, gaining over 2,600 retweets and 26,000 likes in two months (shown below, left). On May 31st, Imgur user deevilknievel^[5] used it in a joke that gained over 1,700 views on the platform (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References