Insane money that 'disaster girl' made from iconic meme picture 19 years later
If you've ever wondered how much people in memes can make from their fame, then wonder no more.
You may be familiar with the 'disaster girl' photo that was a regular fixture of early meme culture, but in true 'where are they now?' fashion, here's exactly how much the girl made from the viral snap.
Her name is Zoë Roth, and back in 2021, she made the decision to financially benefit from the famous picture, which sees Roth, aged four, looking at the camera with an evil smirk while a house is on fire in the distance.
Often used when someone does something mischievous or sinister, it almost looks as if the child started the fire herself.
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Roth made the move to put the original photo up for sale, as a non-fungible token (NFT), also known as a digital ownership certificate.
You may remember the hype around NFTs - basically, they are encrypted with the artist's signature, verifying its legitimacy.
This allows memes, tweets, or anything posted online to be sold like they're art pieces.
The picture in question was snapped back in January 2005, when Roth and her father watched a controlled burn, which is an intentional fire set ablaze to clear a property, in Mebane, North Carolina, USA.
Her father, Dave Roth, is an amateur photographer, and was the man behind the camera when she did her infamous smirk in front of the house fire.
Away from the internet and social media, the picture won a photography prize in 2008 before gaining traction when it was posted online.
Roth, who was in university at the time, sold the original photo for 180 Ethereum, a cryptocurrency, to a buyer known as @3FMusic.
At the time, 180 Ethereum was equal to $473,000 (£341,000).
As well as this, the token included a code that allowed the family to keep the copyright and pocket 10 percent of any future sale.
The 'disaster girl' meme has been re-edited several times to fit different scenarios over the years, with anything from celebrities to famous tragedies being edited in to fit the format.
Speaking to the New York Times back in 2021, she admitted that she likes the different versions of the photo, saying: "You just make it fit however you want to fit it.
"I love seeing them because I'd never make any of them myself, but I love seeing how creative people are."
The Roth family have agreed to split earnings from the NFT between them, while the subject of the photo herself said that the funds would help her pay off her student loan and that some of the proceeds would be going to charities.
She explained: "People who are in memes and go viral is one thing, but just the way the internet has held on to my picture and kept it viral, kept it relevant, is so crazy to me.
"I'm super grateful for the entire experience," Roth admitted.
Topics: Cryptocurrency, Social Media, Viral
Joshua Nair