# Human Kindness Moment > Human Kindness Moment is a 2022 reaction meme from *Everything Everywhere All at Once*, featuring Waymond Wang urging people to choose kindness, especially when facing existential chaos and uncertainty. "Human Kindness Moment" is a reaction meme and quote format taken from the 2022 film *Everything Everywhere All at Once*, specifically the scene where Waymond Wang (played by Ke Huy Quan) delivers an emotional plea for kindness in the face of existential chaos. The scene, in which Waymond asks everyone to stop fighting and "be kind, especially when we don't know what's going on," spread across Twitter, Tumblr, and TikTok as screencaps, quote graphics, and video clips starting in spring 2022. It became a go-to reaction for countering cynicism and nihilism online. ## Origin The scene originates from *Everything Everywhere All at Once*, written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (collectively known as "the Daniels"). The film premiered at South by Southwest on March 11, 2022, then entered limited U.S. theatrical release on March 25 before A24 gave it a wide release on April 8[1]. Production ran from January to March 2020[1]. In the film's climax, Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) is on the verge of surrendering to nihilism after experiencing every universe at once. Jobu Tupaki (Stephanie Hsu) has shown her that nothing matters. Just as Evelyn is about to enter the Everything Bagel and accept oblivion, she pauses to listen to Waymond's plea for everyone to stop fighting and practice kindness, "even when life is senseless"[1]. This moment triggers Evelyn's turn toward empathy, and she uses her multiverse powers to bring happiness to those around her instead of destruction[1]. Ke Huy Quan's performance in this scene, raw and restrained at the same time, made the moment land hard with audiences. The speech began circulating on social media almost immediately after the film's wider release in April 2022. - **Platform:** Twitter, Tumblr (viral spread following theatrical release) - **Creator:** Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (writers/directors), Ke Huy Quan (actor/performance) - **Date:** 2022 ## Overview The Human Kindness Moment meme draws from one of the emotional peaks of *Everything Everywhere All at Once*. In the scene, Waymond Wang stands in front of IRS agents, multiverse fighters, and his own estranged family, and delivers a quiet monologue about choosing kindness when nothing makes sense. The speech hits because it arrives after nearly two hours of absurdist chaos, interdimensional combat, and existential dread. Waymond, who has been portrayed as passive and overlooked for most of the film, suddenly becomes its moral center. Online, the meme takes several forms: screencaps of Ke Huy Quan mid-speech with the quote overlaid, video clips of the full monologue, and text-only quote posts. The core use is as a sincere reaction, not ironic. People share it when they want to push back against doomer nihilism, respond to bad news with empathy, or just remind their followers that kindness still matters. ## How It Spread The meme gained traction in two waves. The first came during the film's theatrical run in spring and summer 2022, when film Twitter and Tumblr users started posting screencaps of Waymond's speech with the quote text overlaid. The scene resonated especially on Tumblr, where users paired it with posts about burnout, mental health, and online toxicity. The second, bigger wave arrived during awards season. *Everything Everywhere All at Once* swept the 95th Academy Awards in March 2023, winning seven Oscars including Best Picture, Best Actress for Michelle Yeoh, Best Supporting Actor for Ke Huy Quan, Best Supporting Actress for Jamie Lee Curtis, and Best Director for Kwan and Scheinert[1]. The film also won two Golden Globe Awards, five Critics' Choice Awards, a BAFTA, and a record four SAG Awards[1]. Each win brought new rounds of the Waymond kindness speech back into social feeds. Ke Huy Quan's own story amplified the meme's emotional weight. His Oscar win marked a comeback after years away from Hollywood, and clips of his tearful acceptance speech were often paired with the Waymond kindness scene. On TikTok, users created edits combining the in-film speech with Quan's real-life awards moments. The meme also found a home in reply threads as a counter to doomer posting. When someone posted nihilistic takes or "nothing matters" sentiments, others would reply with the Waymond screencap as a rebuttal. This "kindness vs. nihilism" framing mirrored the film's own thematic arc, where the movie explores existentialism, nihilism, and absurdism before landing on empathy as the answer[1]. ## How to Use The Human Kindness Moment meme typically works in a few ways: 1. **Direct quote share** — Post a screencap of Waymond mid-speech with the quote overlaid. Used sincerely as a reminder to be kind, often in response to bad news cycles or online fights. 2. **Reply format** — When someone posts a nihilistic take ("nothing matters," "why bother"), reply with the Waymond screencap or a paraphrased version of the speech. The implied message: kindness still matters even if you're right that everything is chaotic. 3. **Video clip** — Share the actual scene from the film, sometimes edited with music or paired with other emotional movie moments. Common on TikTok and Twitter. 4. **Quote graphic** — Text-only posts of the speech, sometimes attributed, sometimes not. These circulate on Instagram stories and Tumblr. ## Cultural Impact The scene's viral spread helped cement *Everything Everywhere All at Once* as a cultural touchstone beyond typical film discourse. The movie grossed $143 million worldwide against a budget of $14–25 million[1], making it one of A24's biggest commercial hits. But the kindness speech meme arguably did more for the film's cultural footprint than its box office numbers. The meme became a shorthand in online spaces for a specific philosophical position: absurdist humanism, the idea that you can acknowledge life's meaninglessness while still choosing to be good to people. This made it popular in mental health communities, therapy-adjacent social media accounts, and among educators who used the scene to discuss existentialist philosophy. The film's exploration of themes like neurodivergence, depression, generational trauma, and Asian American identity gave the kindness speech extra layers[1]. It wasn't just a generic "be nice" message. Coming from a character who'd been underestimated his entire life, speaking to a wife who'd dismissed his gentleness as weakness, the meme carried weight that a greeting card platitude wouldn't. ## Fun Facts - The film's soundtrack features collaborations with Mitski, David Byrne, André 3000, and Randy Newman, among others[1]. - Kwan and Scheinert began developing the project in 2010, a full twelve years before its release[1]. - The film was inspired partly by the video game *Everything* and the children's book *Sylvester and the Magic Pebble*[1]. - Ke Huy Quan's role as Waymond was his first major film part in decades. He'd been largely absent from Hollywood since childhood roles in *Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom* and *The Goonies*. - The "Everything Bagel" that Jobu creates in the film forms a toroid singularity, a black hole shaped like a bagel[1]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is the Human Kindness Moment meme? It's a reaction meme based on a scene from the 2022 film *Everything Everywhere All at Once* where Waymond Wang (Ke Huy Quan) delivers a speech asking everyone to stop fighting and be kind, even when life feels senseless[1]. ### Where did the Human Kindness Moment come from? The scene is from *Everything Everywhere All at Once*, which premiered at SXSW on March 11, 2022, and entered wide release through A24 on April 8, 2022[1]. ### What does the Human Kindness Moment mean? It represents the choice to respond to chaos, nihilism, and despair with empathy and kindness. In the film, it's the turning point where Evelyn rejects nihilism and chooses compassion after hearing Waymond's plea[1]. ### How do you use the Human Kindness Moment meme? Most commonly as a sincere reply to nihilistic or cynical posts, sharing a screencap of Waymond or a quote from the speech. It can also be posted standalone as a general reminder to be kind[1]. ### Is the Human Kindness Moment meme still popular? The meme peaked during the film's 2022 theatrical run and again during the 2023 awards season when the film won seven Oscars[1]. It still circulates in film and mental health communities but with less frequency than at its peak. ### Who plays Waymond in the kindness scene? Ke Huy Quan plays Waymond Wang. He won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for the role at the 95th Academy Awards[1]. ### What film is the Human Kindness Moment from? *Everything Everywhere All at Once*, directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, produced alongside Anthony and Joe Russo and Jonathan Wang[1]. ### Why did the Waymond kindness speech go viral? The speech arrives after nearly two hours of absurdist multiverse chaos, making its quiet sincerity hit harder. Ke Huy Quan's performance and the film's broader themes of depression, generational trauma, and existentialism gave the moment emotional weight beyond a simple "be nice" message[1]. ### How many Oscars did Everything Everywhere All at Once win? Seven, out of eleven nominations: Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Editing[1]. ### What is the Everything Bagel in the film? A black hole-like toroid singularity created by Jobu Tupaki (Stephanie Hsu) that threatens to destroy the multiverse. It represents total nihilism, the opposite of Waymond's kindness message[1]. ## References 1. [Everything Everywhere All at Once]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/human-kindness-moment Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library