Wide Zelenskyy — Distorted wide image of Zelenskyy walking on a red carpet at night

Wide Zelenskyy

2020edited videoclassic

Published October 20, 2026

Wide Zelenskyy horizontally stretches parade footage of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy walking so he looks short and squat, set to Piano Fantasia's 'Song for Denise.' Ukrainian YouTuber Nikita Makovsky posted the first version in June 20201, but the edit went viral across YouTube, Reddit and TikTok in late February 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine, functioning as a comedic counter to the earlier Wide Putin format35.

ukraine war memes political satire memes mashup video memes delayed virality memes snowclone memes

Overview

Each Wide Zelenskyy edit squashes the same parade clip of the Ukrainian president walking toward the camera so his body looks about half as tall and twice as wide, giving him a stubby, waddling silhouette1. The Piano Fantasia Maxi version of 'Song for Denise' runs underneath, turning a formal military appearance into a bouncy comedic loop8.

The format works as a companion to Wide Putin, an earlier Russian-made edit that applied the same horizontal stretch and the same track to Vladimir Putin, and the Zelenskyy version took on political meaning once he became the public face of wartime resistance in late February 20226. Captions often cast the squashed Zelenskyy as scaring Russian troops or marching to victory, as in absol505's 'WIDE Zelensky walk but it makes the Russians RETREAT'3.

Origin & Background

Platform
YouTube
Creator
Nikita Makovsky
Date
2020

On June 14, 2020, Ukrainian YouTuber Nikita Makovsky posted 'Зеленського розперло і тепер він шагає | Wide Zelensky Walking,' which stretched parade footage of Zelenskyy walking and layered it over the Piano Fantasia Maxi version of 'Song for Denise'18. The video sat at roughly 1,600 views for close to two years, making it an obscure upload with little immediate traction6.

Makovsky's edit followed the template of Wide Putin, which paired the identical song with a stretched Putin clip, and substituted the Ukrainian leader for comedic contrast6.

How It Spread

On January 1, 2021, YouTuber Tovarish Lew uploaded a second edit under the title 'WIDE ZELENSKY, ШИРОКИЙ ЗЕЛЕНСКИЙ,' which earned around 28,400 views over the following two months2. The format then sat quietly for roughly a year until Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

On February 26, 2022, YouTuber absol505 posted 'WIDE Zelensky walk but it makes the Russians RETREAT,' which drew about 52,000 views in five days3. The same day, Redditor Red_Strat posted a Wide Zelenskyy GIF to r/dankmemes that collected roughly 20,900 upvotes over the same stretch4.

Two days later, on February 28, TikToker jesse6990 reposted a Wide Zelenskyy edit that hit about 1.4 million plays and 319,800 likes within three days5. On March 2, 2022, the Instagram account suck_a_blyat reposted the TikTok and earned around 4,700 views and 1,200 likes in under a day7.

Timeline

2020-06-14

Nikita Makovsky uploads the first Wide Zelenskyy video to YouTube, which sits near 1,600 views for almost two years[1].

2021-01-01

YouTuber Tovarish Lew posts a second Wide Zelenskyy edit that earns about 28,400 views over two months[2].

2022-02-24

Russia launches a full invasion of Ukraine, setting off a surge of new Zelenskyy edits online.

2022-02-26

Absol505 posts 'WIDE Zelensky walk but it makes the Russians RETREAT' on YouTube[3] and Redditor Red_Strat shares a Wide Zelenskyy GIF to r/dankmemes[4].

2022-02-28

TikToker jesse6990 reposts a Wide Zelenskyy edit that reaches roughly 1.4 million plays in three days[5].

2022-03-02

Instagram account suck_a_blyat reposts the TikTok, earning about 4,700 views and 1,200 likes in under a day[7].

Frequently Asked Questions