Golden retrievers, soft jocks, begone. The summer of 2024 is all about the hot rodent. While “handsome rat” might sound like a backhanded slight, it is anything but.
The idea of anthropomorphizing animals in this way has been around since at least 2023 when this tweet went viral: “Men are either eagle handsome, bear handsome, dog handsome, or reptilian handsome,” with photos of Ryan Gosling, Henry Cavill, Heath Ledger, and Timothée Chalamet, respectively. Thanks to Challengers, the 2024 movie starring Zendaya, Mike Faist, and Josh O’Connor, we’re all talking about hot rat boys.
Hot rodent boys are known for their fine, pinched facial features and are usually svelt rather than muscular. Often, they’re not considered conventionally hot but are intriguing in appearance. There’s a mystery to them, it’s almost like we have to earn their affection (which, some may argue, is way sexier than the slobber-all-over-you kind of love you get from a Golden Retriever but I’m not here to yuck somebody else’s yum). Who are these hot rodent boyfriend celebrities?
Hot rodent boyfriend celebrities
Without further ado…
Mike Faist
PHOTO : PHOTO BY JEFF KRAVITZ/FILMMAGIC
When Challengers came out, it didn’t take long for the internet to lose their minds over Mike Faist, who serves up hot rodent energy in droves. “mike faist is what i imagine stuart little would look like as a human,” tweeted one. Indeed.
Josh O’Connor
PHOTO : PHOTO BY GILBERT FLORES/VARIETY VIA GETTY IMAGES
Another from Challengers, Josh O’Connor “looks like a very kindhearted mouse who got turned into a prince,” observed one fan. Why yes, yes he does.
Kieran Culkin
PHOTO : PHOTO BY MARLEEN MOISE/WIREIMAGE
Adorable and an agent of chaos. Rodent energy distilled.
Matty Healy
PHOTO BY SCOTT LEGATO/WIREIMAGE
While playing a show in Australia, Matty Healy (1975 frontman, perhaps more famously Taylor Swift’s ex) told the crowd: “There’s a meme that I’m a specific rat, which, is it the kid from Flushed Away? This is actually doing me damage. I’m not cashing in on anything there. But we’re all friends, and I’ve seen that meme so many times, and it’s made me laugh.”
Lando Norris
PHOTO : PHOTO BY MICHAEL POTTS/BSR AGENCY/GETTY IMAGES
OK, Lando Norris is definitely teetering on conventional hot territory but then when a friend of a friend called him a squirrel, I paid attention.
Tom Holland
PHOTO : MICHAEL BUCKNER FOR VARIETY
He’s dating Challengers star Zendaya so he’s a hot rat boy by association at the very least. Maybe a guinea pig?
Jeremy Allen White
PHOTO : PHOTO BY VALERIE MACON / AFP
He might star in The Bear, but Jeremy Allen White is a textbook hot rodent.
