The internet saw Pedro Pascal being soft and made it a whole meme

A quiet moment between actors Pedro Pascal and Vanessa Kirby at San Diego Comic-Con 2024 has become the internet’s latest obsession. What began as a sweet show of solidarity between co-stars has spiraled into a viral meme and a polarizing conversation.

What is the Pedro Pascal Anxiety meme?

The “Pedro Pascal anxiety” meme trend kicked off after a video showed Pascal getting close with Fantastic Four co-star Vanessa Kirby. In the clip, originally filmed at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, Pascal held Kirby’s hand and leaned in while speaking to her. It wasn’t just the visuals that caught people’s attention, but rather the caption.

An Instagram account posted the moment last year with the claim, “Pedro Pascal suffers from anxiety, and when he is anxious, he usually tries to have contact with someone.” That explanation spread rapidly, landing on X days later in a repost by @crazyclips_, where it quickly racked up 60.4 million views and 3.3K comments.

Kirby went on record in an interview with Vanity Fair, saying, “What happened is we were both incredibly nervous going out in front of thousands of people who love this comic. He wanted me to know that we were in this together, and I found it a lovely gesture and was very glad to squeeze his hand back.”

In recent weeks, the video resurfaced along with others of the Chilean actor holding hands with costars at big events, kicking off memes about Pedro Pascal with anxiety compared to other people.

Though some fans responded with sympathy, many others reacted with skepticism. The tone online shifted from understanding to distrustful, as users began posting sarcastic memes that made light of the idea of using social anxiety as a pass to be handsy.

Where did the Pedro Pascal anxiety memes come from?

After the Comic-Con footage surfaced, the internet did what it always does—exaggerated, joked, and memed it to death.

The notion that Pascal “needs to touch someone” due to anxiety was repeated, often tongue-in-cheek, across social platforms. A clip from a red carpet moment with The Last of Us co-star Bella Ramsey added fuel. In it, Pascal is seen touching Ramsey’s shoulder and holding his chest. He explained to them, “You know why? Because my anxiety is right here.”

Although that moment showed Pascal acknowledging his anxiety, it didn’t directly support the idea that he physically clings to others when nervous. Still, folks online filled in the blanks with jokes, suggesting Pascal’s anxiety was an all-access pass to flirt with co-workers.

Does Pedro Pascal need to touch people to calm his anxiety?

Pascal has opened up about anxiety before. In a 2023 Men’s Health interview, he acknowledged his struggles with it, but he didn’t mention any coping mechanisms involving physical touch.

As memes continued to swirl, fans began revisiting other interviews and videos to try to connect the dots. Yet, no statement from Pascal or his team has confirmed the specific behavior some are attributing to him.

Importantly, the internet’s rush to turn speculation into “fact” shows how quickly parasocial theories evolve. Just because Pascal expressed vulnerability or appeared close to colleagues doesn’t mean there’s a deeper explanation, or that the public is entitled to one.

Reactions to the memes

Responses have been mixed. On one side, meme-makers have taken the original idea and run wild, leaning into parody mixed with mental health humor. However, not everyone found it funny. Some users pushed back on the jokes, accusing others of shaming male vulnerability and weaponizing mental health.

“I’m sorry but this is bs. You’re a full grown man, not a toddler, control yourself,” wrote one person on X.

One person wrote, “Okay, yeah, let’s invalidate men’s mental health because you can’t process the idea of women feeling safe around a man.”

Additionally, defenders of Pascal argued that his co-stars seemed perfectly at ease with him. To them, these interactions were proof of trust and mutual respect, not overstepping boundaries.