The clip comes from edits of Vladimir Putin walking down a corridor, which spread as the wide Putin meme after users stretched the footage and paired it with upbeat piano music. The format took off on YouTube and TikTok around 2020, with creators copying the walk for teachers, parents, pets and game characters. Because the reference is visual and musical at once, this meme sound alone now triggers the image in viewers minds, which is why it is still reused for short entrance jokes and reaction edits today.