Gnomeo and Juliet may have been released over a decade ago, but the Disney movie is getting a new lease of life thanks to TikTok. The criminally-underrated romance movie, which has James McAvoy and Emily Blunt voicing the star-crossed lovers, gives a new twist to the classic romantic tale, with the bitter rivalry between red and blue gnomes being the thing that keeps the two lovers apart (along with a garden fence, of course).
As a family movie, Gnomeo and Juliet has a decisively happier ending than the original, as well as a number of incredibly wholesome moments that have caused the film to go viral on TikTok, with videos under the tag #gnomeoandjuliet amassing nearly 24 million views at the time of writing.
This isn’t the first time an animated movie has caused a stir on TikTok. Recently, musically-inclined elephant Meena from Sing 2 went viral after people struggled to contain their unbridled hatred for her and her pick-me ways. Luckily, Gen Z-er’s view on Gnomeo and Juliet is decisively more wholesome.
Several of the viral TikToks, which have wracked up close to a million views each, focus specifically on the moment the lovers first lock eyes to the sound of Elton John’ ballad ‘Hello Hello,’ with one user calling it the “cutest moment in cinematic history,” while another admitted that they’re “jealous of two literal garden gnomes.”
@hange.wifeme I used to watch this movie on repeat and the way they look at each other 😍😍 #fyp #gnomeoandjuliet #truelove ♬ original sound – frankiesaudios
As Gnomeo and Juliet set the standards for modern romance, the TikTok tag #gnomeowouldtreatmeright is also fast approaching 1 million views. Men might say modern dating standards are unrealistic, but all you need to do is be an animated garden gnome.
Bizzarely, people’s appreciation for Gnomeo also appears to be approaching heart-throb territory, as several TikTokers post edits “thirsting” after the protagonist.
@gnomeoeatsass #gnomeowouldtreatmeright #gnomeoandjuliet ♬ Eat Your Salad by Citi Zēni – the.allegra
But it isn’t just about the gnomes. TikTokers have also grown emotional over the sub-plot centred around Featherstone the plastic Flamingo, who at the climax of the movie finally found another flamingo to love after a bitter divorce by his human owner led to him being torn apart from his first love. In one TikTok, which amassed over 1 million views, a user admitted they “cried” over the emotional sub-plot.
If you want to see what all the fuss is about, you can watch Gnomeo and Juliet now on streaming service Disney Plus.