Lord Farquaad is the short, power-hungry ruler who serves as the main villain in DreamWorks' animated film Shrek, released in 2001 and voiced by John Lithgow. His exaggerated laugh, full of self-importance despite his small size, became one of the character's most recognisable traits. Short clips of the laugh circulated on soundboards, meme pages and short-form video apps, where creators reused it as a shorthand for arrogance, petty revenge and failed schemes. It remains popular because the sound is instantly recognisable even without the picture, and it delivers a complete joke in about two seconds.