While they say everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame when it comes to the internet, some people are able to spend much longer in the spotlight.
If you've been online recently you might have come across the 'British Cop Screaming' meme, and the man behind it spoke to LADbible about how it all started and why he does it.
Check it out:
TikToker and actor Lewis Saunderson told LADbible he struck upon success when he was creating scenarios for videos on the app and spotted he was having success with clips that showcased his 'intense, emotional, sort of dramatic style'.
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"I thought this seems to be working when I started to have some success with some of the videos, which were very kind of serious and emotional and dramatic," Lewis said of his success, as he realised there was an audience for the awareness videos he was making.
His videos usually involve scenarios where he's got to act out distressing scenarios, and despite the production values and various camera angles involved there are some people who still wonder if it's real.
TikTok/@lewissaunderson38
From being a police officer screaming in grief because it's his daughter at the crime scene to portraying an addict begging his mum to let him in, the videos are 'dramatic scenarios' he's performing.
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Lewis has explained plenty of times what he's doing and stressed that he's acting in his videos, and that some but not all of them are done to raise awareness around issues such as mental health.
He said: "I do appreciate not every single one of them since can be classed as an awareness video.
"There certainly are videos that are for awareness, but then there are just certain videos that are just dramatic scenarios that I'm the stories that I'm telling, essentially, to use the platform to show off that side of me as an emotional actor.
"I appreciate that with everything that I do there's always going to be people that don't understand why I'm doing it or why I'm creating such 'depressing storylines', scenarios whereby I'm losing the loved ones and putting myself through such kind of dramatic sort of moments.
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"These are the stories I am telling, and this is the style of acting that I do well."
TikTok/@lewissaunderson38
If you've seen Lewis's stuff on TikTok then you've probably gone through some of the comments, including ones from people who don't seem to get that it's a performance or are just deciding to take the p**s instead.
However, Lewis explained that while he doesn't engage with the comments due to the negativity that's sometimes there he does get very kind private messages from viewers.
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The actor said that since he started making his videos on TikTok he's had people 'sharing their own stories with me' or telling him that in a way his videos have helped people process things going on in their own lives.
"I do get a lot of those messages, I do read and I do respond because that's where I'm having a nice direct dialogue with somebody," he said of the people who got in touch directly to talk to him.
"It's those that I'm making these videos for, so I really do try and make an effort to, to engage with with those fans and and followers."
TikTok/@lewissaunderson38
The TikToking actor also told us exactly how he gets himself in such a state to pull off all the screaming and emotion you see in his videos.
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He revealed he did at times have to put himself in 'a bit of a bummer or dark place' and afterwards take 'a bit of time to kind of come down' from it.
Despite that he said he found it 'therapeutic' to 'play out these scenarios', telling us: "It's therapy for me, you know, it does actually help make me feel better in a really strange way."
Mental health is certainly an aspect of many of his videos, particularly one where he doesn't even speak but just holds up a series of placards.
That video was inspired by Love Actually, which the actor said was one of his favourite movies and something he watches every year, and he thought saying it without speaking was the perfect way to get the message across.
TikTok/@lewissaunderson38
Beyond the comments and messages there's also been one other massive way people have been responding to Lewis and his work, and that's by making him into a meme.
Fortunately the actor said he can 'see the funny side' of his runaway success in becoming a meme that's spread across the internet like wildfire.
An added bonus of that is he gets more traffic back to his channel which only serves to make him more successful.
Even his friends and family have been sending him memes that have been created with clips from his channel and he's seen that over a million 'British Cop Screaming' memes have been made featuring him.
"It's bonkers, it's absolutely bonkers. I kind of think, well, in a way, that's kind of cool," the actor said of his meme success helping boost him.
TikTok/@lewissaunderson38
"I don't take offence to it, and I don't let it make me feel like it's diminishing what I class to be in that moment an authentic reaction and an authentic performance.
"But again, it's out of my control. It's bigger than what I am. I think when you have success on these platforms it's out of your control, and I think if something really catches fire then this comes with the territory.
"When that happens, that's just great for my platforms, and that's great for my channel."
As for the future, after shooting to success and becoming a meme in 2023 he's hoping 2024 will be even bigger.
Watch this space.
Featured Image Credit: TikTok/Lewis Saunderson
Topics:TikTok, Viral, Mental Health
Joe Harker
Joe graduated from the University of Salford with a degree in Journalism and worked for Reach before joining the LADbible Group. When not writing he enjoys the nerdier things in life like painting wargaming miniatures and chatting with other nerds on the internet. He's also spent a few years coaching fencing. Contact him via [emailprotected]
