You’ve seen it. Someone joins a weird group, or a friend finally admits they like that one obscure anime, and suddenly the comments section is a wall of people chanting "One of us! One of us!" It’s everywhere. It is the ultimate digital initiation ritual. But honestly, most people using the one of us meme have absolutely no clue that they are actually referencing a black-and-white horror movie from 1932 that was so controversial it was banned in the UK for thirty years.
The movie is Freaks, directed by Tod Browning.
Browning was coming off the massive success of Dracula with Bela Lugosi. He had all the juice in Hollywood. Instead of playing it safe, he decided to make a film featuring actual carnival sideshow performers. We’re talking about real people with real physical differences—conjoined twins, people without limbs, microcephalic individuals. During a wedding feast scene in the film, the "freaks" accept a "normal" trapeze artist into their inner circle. They chant, "Gooble-gobble, gooble-gobble, we accept her, one of us!" It is haunting. It’s rhythmic. It is deeply uncomfortable because of the context of the film’s ending, where they eventually mutilate her to make her "one of them."
Strange origins for a meme you use when your buddy finally buys a PlayStation, right?
From Pre-Code Horror to South Park
Memes don't just happen. They drift. The one of us meme survived because it tapped into a universal human need to belong, even if that belonging is rooted in being an outsider. For decades, the phrase lived in the heads of film nerds and counter-culture junkies.
Then came The Simpsons.
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In the 1992 episode "Homer’s Triple Bypass," the show parodies the Freaks scene. South Park did it too, famously, in the "Goobacks" episode. Every time a major pillar of pop culture referenced that weird, rhythmic chanting, it stripped away a layer of the original 1930s grit and replaced it with comedic irony. By the time it hit Reddit and Twitter (now X), the "Gooble-gobble" part mostly fell away, leaving us with the punchy, repetitive "One of us" chant we recognize today.
It’s a linguistic virus. Short. Rhythmic. Perfectly suited for the echo chamber of a message board.
The Psychology of Why We Chant It
Why does this specific meme stick when others die in a week?
Psychology tells us about "in-group" signaling. When you post that meme, you aren't just welcoming someone; you are defining the boundaries of your community. You’re saying, "We are the weirdos, and now you are one too." It’s a badge of honor. Interestingly, the meme is almost never used by "cool" mainstream groups. You don’t see it as often in a thread about the Super Bowl. You see it in threads about Linux distributions, niche tabletop RPGs, or specific fandoms for cult TV shows.
It keeps the spirit of the original 1932 film alive, even unintentionally. The characters in Freaks were protective of their own. They had a code. If you weren't "one of us," you were a "clean." Using the meme today still carries that faint scent of "us versus them."
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It’s also incredibly low-effort to deploy. You don’t need to be funny. You just need to type three words. In a digital landscape where everyone is fighting for the cleverest comeback, the one of us meme offers a communal sigh of relief. It’s the sound of a crowd.
The Resurgence of Among Us
If you think the meme was peaking in 2015, you missed the 2020 explosion. The game Among Us turned the concept of "one of us" into a literal survival mechanic. While the phrase "sus" took over the world, the "one of us" sentiment became the backbone of the game's social deduction.
Streamers like Disguised Toast or Valkyrae would often fall into these chants during lobby interactions. It merged the old-school movie reference with a new-school gaming phenomenon. Now, a 14-year-old might think they’re quoting a space-bean game, while their 40-year-old uncle thinks they’re quoting The Simpsons, and a 90-year-old film historian is just sitting in the corner shivering at the memory of the "Gooble-gobble" scene.
The Dark Side of Inclusion
We should probably talk about the fact that the original scene is actually quite tragic. In Freaks, the trapeze artist Cleopatra mocks the performers. She finds the "one of us" chant disgusting. She pours wine over them. She treats them like monsters.
When we use the meme today, we’ve flipped the script. We’ve reclaimed the "freak" status. Being "one of us" is now a goal. It’s a complete 180-degree turn in social values. We celebrate the niche. We celebrate the weird. If you aren't "one of us" in some subculture, you're basically boring.
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But there’s a catch.
Memes like this can also create "gatekeeping." Sometimes the chant is used ironically to mock someone who is trying too hard to fit in. "Oh, you bought a leather jacket? One of us, I guess." It can be a weapon of exclusion just as easily as a tool for inclusion. Tone is hard to read in text.
How to Use the Meme Without Looking Like a Bot
If you're going to use the one of us meme, you've got to understand the timing. It’s a "closer" meme. You don't lead with it. You wait for the moment of conversion.
- The "First Time" Buy: Someone posts a picture of their first mechanical keyboard.
- The "Guilty Pleasure" Admission: A friend finally admits they actually like pineapple on pizza.
- The "Nerd" Milestone: Someone finishes watching all 800+ episodes of One Piece.
That is when you drop the line.
Keep it simple. Don't add emojis. The raw text "One of us." or "One of us. One of us." is more effective because it mimics the monotone chant from the film. Adding a "LOL" at the end kills the vibe. You want it to feel slightly cultish. That’s the magic.
Actionable Steps for Meme Culture Mastery
If you want to actually understand the roots of what you're posting, do these three things:
- Watch the Wedding Feast Scene: Look up the "Gooble Gobble" scene from Freaks (1932) on YouTube. It’s only two minutes long. Seeing the original context will completely change how you feel when you see the meme. It’s visceral.
- Check the Subreddit Context: Before dropping the "One of us" chant in a new community, see if they have their own specific version. Some communities, like the r/WallStreetBets crowd or specific gaming circles, have modified the chant to fit their internal lingo.
- Use it for Positive Reinforcement: The meme is at its best when it's welcoming a "newbie" into a hobby. Use it to make someone feel like their new interest is valid.
The one of us meme isn't going anywhere. It has survived almost a century of media evolution, moving from celluloid to broadcast television to fiber-optic cables. It is a permanent part of the human lexicon because, at the end of the day, nobody wants to be the "clean" person standing outside the tent. We all want to be in the room, chanting along with the rest of the freaks.