Since we wrote about the rise of Goncharov last week, it’s safe to say that the internet’s biggest inside joke has exploded.
In case you’re living under a rock, you’ll know that in late November, the term #goncharov started trending on popular microblogging site Tumblr. As the home of various ‘fandom’ communities for TV series like Doctor Who, Supernatural, and Sherlock, the users of Tumblr definitely know their way around cultural discourse.
Over two years after a user posted a picture of a clothing tag reading ‘Goncharov,’ noting that it sounded like the title of a Martin Scorsese drama movie, the post was rediscovered. Inspired by the post, Tumblr uses collectively decided to participate in an increasingly-believable bit about Goncharov being a real, 1973 mobster movie — fit with fake posters, gifsets, Oscars campaigns, and cultural criticism.
Since then, Goncharov has caught the attention of the international press, even being featured in the New York Times. Discussing the scale of the meme, TikTok user Nick Nadowell asked, “Do you guys think that Francesca has had to explain to her dad, Martin Scorsese, that Tumblr, the website, has made up a thriller movie and said he directed it, and started making homoerotic fanfiction about it? You think she’s had to explain that yet?”
As it turns out, the answer is “yes,” as Francesca herself stitched Nadowell’s TikTok and shared screenshots of a conversation she had with her father about the viral sensation. Showing him the New York Times article (ours was better, but fair enough), she asked him, “Did you see this?” In response, Scorsese brilliantly quipped, “Yes. I made that film years ago.”
So, in case you were wondering Scorsese has definitely seen your erotic fanfiction concerning Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. We also found out he’s saved to his daughter’s contacts as “Daddio,” which in itself is iconic, really. If you want to explore actual, real-life movies that have had the impact Goncharov is said to have had, check out our guide to some of the best movies of all time.