The term comes from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, released in 2023, where Miguel O'Hara explains that certain fixed events must happen for a Spider-Person's story to hold together. On TikTok, the idea escaped the film and became shorthand for any painful, embarrassing or unavoidable life moment that feels destined, from failed relationships to repeated mistakes. Creators began pairing the explanation with their own clips, turning personal setbacks into shared meme jokes about fate. Its popularity endures because almost everyone recognises a moment they could see coming but could not stop.