If you’ve spent more than five minutes in the My Chemical Romance fandom, you’ve heard the legend. It’s the ultimate "butterfly effect" story: a young, aspiring animator stands on the pier, watches the world change in a cloud of dust and debris, and decides right then and there to start a band.
That animator was Gerard Way. The result was a movement that defined a generation.
But lately, a specific image has been making the rounds on social media—a grainy, handheld shot of a man who looks suspiciously like a 2001-era Gerard, staring at the burning skyline. People call it the Gerard Way 9/11 photo. They share it with captions about destiny and tragedy.
There’s just one problem. Most of the time, the photo people are sharing isn't him.
The Mystery of the "Ferry Photo"
The internet loves a "found" moment. We want to see the exact second a hero is born. For years, fans have scoured archival footage and news photography from September 11, 2001, looking for a glimpse of the man who would eventually write "Skylines and Turnstiles."
One particular photo often pops up on Reddit and Twitter. It shows a man with dark, slightly shaggy hair, wearing a tan shirt or jacket, standing among a crowd of people. He's looking toward the towers from what looks like a waterfront or a ferry dock.
Honestly, the resemblance is striking. He has the same profile, the same build.
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But when you dig into the actual interviews Gerard has given—specifically his long-form chats with Kevin Smith on SModcast or his 2019 reflections with Newsweek—the details don't quite line up with the viral images. Gerard has been very specific about where he was. He wasn't just a face in a crowd on a sidewalk; he was on the water.
Where was Gerard Way actually standing?
On the morning of the attacks, Gerard was commuting to his internship at Cartoon Network in New York City. He was 24 years old, living in New Jersey, and trying to sell a show called Breakfast Monkey.
He was on a ferry.
As the boat pulled away from the New Jersey side, he watched the first plane hit. He has described being trapped on that ferry, surrounded by hundreds of people, feeling a "wave of human anguish" that he had never experienced before.
"It felt like the end of the world. I was right at the edge of the boat... all these people behind me had friends and family in those buildings. I didn’t."
Because he was on a moving vessel in the middle of the Hudson River during the initial chaos, the likelihood of a professional photographer capturing a clear, identifiable shot of him in that specific moment is incredibly low. Most "confirmed" photos of him from that day are actually just people with similar haircuts in similar clothes.
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The Star-Ledger Myth
There is a persistent rumor that Gerard Way appeared on the cover of the Newark Star-Ledger the next day. This is one of those facts that gets repeated so often it becomes "true" by default.
Fans have spent years digital-archiving every page of the Star-Ledger from September 2001. While there are plenty of photos of Jersey commuters looking devastated, no one has ever found a high-resolution, verified image of Gerard on that front page.
It’s possible he was in a background shot. It’s possible he was in a crowd photo inside the paper. But the "iconic cover photo" seems to be a bit of Mandela Effect—a collective memory of something that feels like it should exist because the story is so cinematic.
Why the Gerard Way 9/11 Photo matters to fans
Why are we so obsessed with finding this picture? It’s not just about celebrity voyeurism.
For many, My Chemical Romance wasn't just a band; it was a lifeline. Knowing that the band’s entire existence was a direct response to trauma makes the music feel more authentic. It’s the "therapy" Gerard talked about.
He didn't want to be a rock star. He wanted to be an artist who did something meaningful. He literally went home, picked up a guitar he hadn't touched in years, and wrote the lyrics: "You're not in this alone."
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That’s the real "photo" we have—the lyrical snapshot of a man processing PTSD in real-time.
The actual "Skylines and Turnstiles" origins
If you want the real history, look at the timeline:
- September 11: Gerard witnesses the collapse from the ferry.
- The Days Following: He writes the first MCR song, "Skylines and Turnstiles," in his parents' basement.
- The Formation: He calls Matt Pelissier and Ray Toro. Mikey Way joins later on bass.
- The Mission: The band was built on the idea of being "dangerous" and "honest" because life felt too short for anything else.
Sorting Fact from Fan Fiction
If you see a post claiming to show the Gerard Way 9/11 photo, take it with a grain of salt.
- Check the location: Is the person in the photo on a ferry or a pier? Gerard was on the water.
- Look at the hair: In 2001, Gerard’s hair was dark and somewhat short, not the long, jet-black "Three Cheers" look most people associate with him.
- Source the image: Most of these photos come from Getty Images or AP archives of "unidentified commuters."
While it's possible he's out there in the background of some raw footage, Gerard himself hasn't ever pointed to a specific photo and said, "That’s me." He prefers to let the music speak for the experience.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Researchers
If you are looking to understand the real impact of that day on the band's history, skip the grainy photos and go straight to the sources that actually matter.
- Listen to "Skylines and Turnstiles": It’s the closest thing to a diary entry from that day.
- Watch "Life on the Murder Scene": This documentary features the band talking candidly about their early days and the 9/11 influence.
- Read "Not the Life It Seems": This biography by Tom Bryant offers the most detailed, vetted account of the band’s formation.
- Verify before sharing: If you find a "new" photo, use a reverse image search. Most are misidentified shots of New Yorkers from the same era.
The lack of a "perfect" photo doesn't change the truth of the story. Gerard Way saw the worst of humanity and decided to build something that celebrated the best of it. That’s a better legacy than a Getty Image.
Check out the original demos of "Skylines and Turnstiles" to hear the raw, unpolished sound of that era—it captures the emotion much better than a grainy photograph ever could.