Move over rat girl summer, TikTok celebrates the hot rodent boyfriend trend

By Abby Amoakuh

Published Jun 5, 2024 at 01:06 PM

Reading time: 2 minutes

58521

People have always found beauty in the combination of charisma and unusual features. The early 1990s were controversially filled with the pale skin, dark under-eyes, and bony frame of the heroin chic look. In the last few years, the internet has had an obsession with actors and influencers who look like Tim Burton characters—think TimothĂ©e Chalamet and Emma Chamberlain—and now the cultural lens has moved over to rodent men. That’s right, Hollywood’s sexiest heartthrobs are now being likened to mice and rats but in the most flattering way possible!

@lindsrhiann

“is this funny?” “doesn’t matter, it’s true” #greenscreenvideo #fyp

♬ In My Room - Insane Clown Posse

What are rodent men?

Simply put, rodent men are guys with rodent-like features, meaning that they are often skinny and brunette, with a long, chiselled jawline.

https://twitter.com/steveisdone/status/1798055665224884240

Who would have thought that Gen Z could transform the epithet ‘rat’ to a new moniker for hot? It certainly wasn’t on my 2024 bingo card but I’ve started to expect the unexpected.

Some critics have noted that this trend is nothing but another iteration of ‘ugly hotness.’ In case you’ve forgotten, content creator Violet Marmur first coined what became known as the “hot ugly” TikTok theory in 2021. In it, the self-proclaimed ugly hot theorist hypothesised that people are either ‘hot hot’ or conventionally attractive, ‘hot ugly’ and subjectively attractive, or ‘ugly hot’ and attractive despite having ‘ugly’ features.

Keeping that in mind, it’s easy to see that rodent men might simply just be another synonym for the hotness discovered in men with unusual, unconventionally attractive features.

Which actors are rodent men?

I’m so glad you asked. First on the list, we have ‘rat men’ or ‘rat boyfriends’. In terms of appearance, rat men have black or grey hair paired with uniquely sharp and pointy features. Popular examples include Josh O’Connor, TimothĂ©e Chalamet, Barry Keoghan, and Matty Healy.

Then, we have ‘mice men’ of course. Mice men have lighter brown-ish hair, softer rodent features, and smaller eyes. Some of the internet’s favourite mice boyfriends include Mike Faist, Harry Styles, Kieran Culkin, and Jeremy Allen White

https://twitter.com/fincherslay/status/1783169239190253605
https://twitter.com/peacchip/status/1788328611008688379

Why are rodent men so controversial?

Well, men don’t appreciate being called rodents for one. Some men are even calling out a potential sexist double standard, noting that women would strongly oppose being likened to animals that are known for damaging properties and spreading diseases.

This isn’t exactly true. In the past, we witnessed the emergence and widespread popularity of rat girl summer. The trend was about women embracing rodent characteristics, such as nibbling on snacks all the time and chewing noisly while rotting in bed. Sounds like a good time to me.

After all, rodents are also known as intelligent pets and witty cartoon characters. Anyone remember the 2007 movie Ratatouille? I suppose it’s up to the individual men to define whether they like their new classification. But one thing is for sure, gone are the days of the golden retriever boyfriend. People are looking for edgier, sexier and broodier rodent men now.

Keep On Reading

By Jennifer Raymont

Lily-Rose Depp channels sexy sleaze in HBO’s The Idol: A portrayal of indie sleaze’s sultry side

By Jennifer Raymont

Zendaya’s Challengers is making tenniscore the trend of the summer, get us to Wimbledon now

By Alma Fabiani

TikToker predicts squatterscore as the next big thing. Please, let’s not

By Eliza Frost

Everyone’s posing like Nicki Minaj: the TikTok trend explained 

By Charlie Sawyer

This Oscar-winning actor is the top pick to play Voldemort in HBO Max Harry Potter reboot

By Alma Fabiani

Amazon Music is giving away 4 months free. Here’s how to claim it

By Eliza Frost

Misogyny, sexism, and the manosphere: how this year’s Love Island UK has taken a step backwards

By Eliza Frost

Skibidi, tradwife, and delulu are among new words added to Cambridge Dictionary for 2025

By Eliza Frost

Taylor Swift’s Release Party of a Showgirl is coming to cinemas everywhere, and it’s already made $15M

By Abby Amoakuh

BLACKPINK’s Lisa faces backlash after wearing civil rights icon Rosa Parks on her crotch at Met Gala

By Eliza Frost

Sabrina Carpenter says you need to get out more if you think Man’s Best Friend artwork is controversial 

By Charlie Sawyer

SHEIN faces fines from EU for deceiving customers with fake discounts and misleading information

By Eliza Frost

What is Shrekking? The latest toxic dating trend explained 

By Charlie Sawyer

Transformers director Michael Bay officially confirmed to direct movie about viral Skibidi Toilet meme

By Charlie Sawyer

Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper accuses former soccer coach of sexual harassment in new docuseries

By Charlie Sawyer

Father of former Harry Potter star gives serious warning to the new child stars in HBO Max reboot

By Eliza Frost

Is the princess treatment TikTok trend the bare minimum or a relationship red flag?

By Eliza Frost

How to spot a performative male out in the wild 

By Charlie Sawyer

What is ketamine therapy, the psychiatric treatment healing famous Mormons Jen and Zac Affleck’s marriage?

By Charlie Sawyer

Chris Brown is facing over 10 years in prison. Here’s how his violent past has led him here