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Josh Hutcherson Talks Five Nights at Freddys and That Josh Hutcherson Whistle Meme
The FNAF star described acting with his animatronic costars, and commented on that viral Josh Hutcherson whistle meme. "I had no idea it existed, and then my girlfriend posted it," he said.
Yes, Josh Hutcherson has seen the Josh Hutcherson whistle meme from TikTok. And no, he doesn't really understand it, either.
"There's like, this whistle thing," Hutcherson told the audience during his January 9 visit to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon—and they cheered, because they've seen it, too.
In case you're not familiar, the Josh Hutcherson whistle edit meme is based on a gloriously-random bit of Internet fandom: A 9-year-old YouTube video that's essentially a fancam montage of Hutcherson posing for photos, set to Flo Rida's 2012 song "Whistle."
Possibly due to the A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, the prequel movie to the Hunger Games franchise that Hutcherson starred as Peeta Mellark in—and maybe, just maybe, a longing for the more joyous era of Internet that existed a decade ago—the 2014 video went viral in 2023. Naturally, TikTok users took the ball and ran with it, spawning all manner of Josh Hutcherson whistle edit memes (including hilarious jump scares).
"Do people come up to you on the street and sing Flo Rida to you?" Fallon asked Hutcherson.
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"I had no idea it existed, and then my girlfriend posted it," Hutcherson said, sounding adorably bemused and defensive about the whole thing. "The internet wins again. These photos are some edit of, like, a montage of photos that somebody did in 2014? And they put it to a song?"
"And now it's like a Rick Roll, basically," Hutcherson continued. "Now it's like, you think you're going to watch a recipe. They open up the pot, and it's my face, and the whistle starts, and it's just like..." He added that his little brother and his boyfriend sat him down during the holidays to explain this extremely-online trend.
"They're very creative, very odd, and I'm here for it," Hutcherson said. Agreed!
Watch the original Josh Hutcherson whistle song below:
Speaking of jump scares, Fallon also congratulated Hutcherson on the massive success of Five Nights at Freddy's, which he starred in as unlucky security guard Mike. "It was the biggest horror movie, I think, of 2023," Jimmy Fallon said. And he's right: The film adaptation of the video game series created by Scott Cawthorn opened with a global debut of $132.6 million, shattered multiple box office records, and was the top-grossing horror release of the year.
Did Hutcherson know it was going to be such a hit?
"You know, the FNaF fan base is massive, so the game's huge and everything—but they knocked it out of the park, really nailing the tone of it," he told Fallon.
Josh Hutcherson Explains What's Really Inside the Five Nights at Freddy's Characters—and Addresses a FNAF Sequel
Asked what it was like acting with the creepy animatronic Freddy Fazbear and his pals, Hutcherson joked, "they're absolute divas. That's the thing nobody really wants to talk about."
RELATED: Here's How They Made Those Five Nights at Freddy's Characters
He went on to explain that the Jim Henson Creature Shop-created robotic suits have a stunt actor inside. "They're like, seven feet tall—not the stunt actors, they're normal size—and then they have three people for each costume, operating with remote controls and stuff."
This did present some acting challenges, Hutcherson admits. "It would be weird, when you'd try to have a scene with them, and all the sudden the eyes were just like," Hutcherson pointed two fingers in two different directions, to emulate a roving robot eye. "I'm like hey! This guy's not focused!"
Fallon had to ask the question so many fans are wondering: Will there be a Five Nights at Freddy's sequel, with Hutcherson reprising his role as Mike?
"Nothing's official, but I'm hopeful," Hutcherson said, citing how well it performed. "It's a cool world. It did pretty well. We'll see!" Let's hope the chances are scary-good.
