White boys of the month have been trending for some time. Here’s why their momentum isn’t stopping

If you’re chronically online, you’ve seen the addictive TikTok edit of Nicholas Chavez. The “Monsters” actor took social media by storm after the series’ release, where he played the role of Lyle Menendez. Hundreds of edits followed, deeming him the “white boy of the month.” Chavez has gained 1.8 million followers on Instagram and starred in other shows including, “Grotesquerie,” and the “I Know What You Did Last Summer” reboot. Unintentionally this trend would go on to boost the careers of many other white male celebrities. But is this fair?

To be worthy of the title, the new man must become inescapable on the internet and fill your timeline with their stereotypical good looks via thirst traps or interview clips. The choice isn’t made automatically at the beginning of the month, but it follows the release of what’s trending at the moment.

It’s not clear when the “white boy of the month” phrase originated, but the term first gained popularity on X, previously known as Twitter. The first trace of the phrase dates back to 2011, with X user @WhoIsLailaMarie claiming Chris Pine as her “white boy of the month.” Twitter user @madisonripIey made a compilation of all the white boys of the month in 2018, with Michael B. Jordan making an appearance. Poking fun at the notion that he’s not white, the post made light of how we were all obsessing over him so he had to be included. These declarations continued and gained momentum, and shouting out a white boy of the month transferred to other social media platforms in the process.

During the peak of the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020, we were trapped in the house with nowhere to go. So what did we turn to? TikTok. Users took to the app to be entertained, informed, and scroll until our brains went numb. An edit of Timothée Chalamet’s magnetic energy on the dance floor accumulated 53.4 million views, 5.6 million likes, and 1.1 million shares. This was my first encounter with the magnitude this trend was capable of having, which quickly became a constant point of observation for me as it grew in popularity.

Some of Chalamet’s successors included Harry Styles, Tom Holland, Noah Centineo, Jacob Elordi, Drew Starkey and Austin Butler, who are all tall with chiseled good looks. Trust me, this list could go on for days. With the fluctuations of obsessions in the entertainment industry, this trend adds an additional spotlight on the man enthroned at that moment.

Media companies flock to these men because they’re a “hot topic,” which inevitably results in more content getting shoved down our throats. On top of that, algorithms continue feeding us their edits or interviews because it boosts viewership and user engagement. All of these things are designed to market this selected group of men to the world and give us something new to obsess over.

Although Chavez isn’t fully white, he’s very white-passing. He has a Latino father and a white mother. The same can be said for Centineo, who claims to have some Native American and Latino heritage, but is pushed into the white category regularly. These men are given an upper hand in the industry due to their proximity to whiteness, which is something those on the opposite side of the spectrum don’t have.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love a good thirst trap. As the girlies say “I’m screaming and kicking my feet,” – that’s me when I see Harry Styles. But why are white men always marketed as the heartthrob? We see this in “High School Musical,” where Troy is the dreamboat, while Chad is just the best friend. Although they both embody “the boy next door,” athletic build and are charismatic, and funny. This same sentiment can also be seen in “Starstruck” and “The Originals.”

Though the trend has gained substantial traction online, Hollywood and the media know that it is problematic, and that this is where the “token” person of color comes into play. There are unspoken and unfair standards put on men of color, who are often held to a higher caliber of excellence when it comes to popularity and social acceptance.

When Mike Faist was given the title earlier this year, rhetoric of “Rat Boy Summer” and “Hot Rodent Boyfriend,” began to emerge. Celebrities like Faist and his “Challengers” co-star Josh O’Connor were seen as unconventionally attractive. Despite their skinny, lanky appearance and rat or mouse-like features, they were the exception, and still grouped into a category of attractiveness. Although this opens up leeway for what could be considered the ideal white male demographic, there is still a hidden double standard that allows these categories to exist despite the fact that they could never be created for men of color.

Men like Jordan, Michele Morrone, Denzel Washington, and Pedro Pascal gained widespread recognition because they are exceptionally attractive and insanely talented. Although these men may be heavily promoted based on possessing one or more of these qualities, they still require the other to gain success.

This exemplifies why we see the same actors of color placed on these lists of hottest celebrities or “white boys of the month;” they are the selection of non-white men that popular culture is aware of, deeming them as “tokens.” The popularity and notoriety of the actor’s project plays a major role in this as well because we see celebrities like Keith Powers recently starting to receive widespread attention, due to his involvement in a mainstream project, “Uglies.”

Though he has a standout combination of looks and talent, Powers isn’t seen at the same level as Jordan or Morrone, due to the demographics of viewers watching his projects. Essentially, if you went up to a random person on the street and asked them if they knew who Jordan and Morrone were, they most likely would. But if you were to inquire about someone like Powers, they likely wouldn’t – again due to Powers’ niche audience.

I know this trend was created with comedic intention, and as a way of almost poking fun at the way pop culture tends to swoon over white men. However, for me it further reiterates that the white-centric gaze will continue determining what’s trendy or worthy of going mainstream.

Why?

Because that’s what goes viral.