ladbible homepage
ladbible homepage
  • Home
  • News
    • UK
    • US
    • World
    • Ireland
    • Australia
    • Science
    • Crime
    • Weather
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV
    • Film
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • Netflix
    • Disney
  • Sport
  • Technology
  • Travel
  • Lifestyle
  • Money
  • Originals
    • FFS PRODUCTIONS
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Citizen Reef
  • Videos
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Archive
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content Here
  • GAMINGbible
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • Tyla
  • FOODbible
  • UNILAD Tech
'David After Dentist' is now all grown up after going viral as kid
Home>Entertainment
Published 15:10 27 Mar 2023 GMT+1

'David After Dentist' is now all grown up after going viral as kid

The iconic man behind the meme looks almost unrecognisable

Rhiannon Ingle

Rhiannon Ingle

google discoverFollow us on Google Discover

Anyone with a computer back in the late 2000s knows exactly who 'David at the Dentist' is.

What would have gone on to become one of the biggest memes of the era was posted by none other than David's very own father.

All recorded on a Flip video camera - how retro - the footage documented the seven-year-old's side-splitting reaction to anaesthesia. Watch below for a blast from the past:

Advert

One of David's most-famous one-liners from the loopy response was asking 'is this real life' while totally zonked.

The original caption read: "He had just had a tooth removed due to Hyperdontia or extra tooth. This was taken in the parking lot of the dentist office."

David's dad went on to note that his son was 'so out of it', adding: "He is very smart and always has something interesting to say about many different issues. His philosophical reaction to the medication didn't really surprise us.

Little did he know, 'David at the Dentist' would go on to become a viral sensation.

The video - just a minute or so long - has since racked up 141 million views since it was first uploaded to YouTube a whole 14 years ago.

And now, nearly a decade and a half later, the man behind the meme is almost completely unrecognisable.

The video was first posted to YouTube back in 2009.
YouTube/booba1234

David DeVore, now 22-years-old, is all grown up and is currently in his fourth year at the University of Florida studying computer science.

If that doesn't make you feel ancient then I don't know what will.

After all these years, the viral star has opened up some more about that fateful day and what his life has been like since he blew up online all those years ago.

He told the Daily Star: "Every once in a while someone will just recognise me from the video somehow.

"I have a baby face but I still look a lot different than I did in the video. But every few years, something crazy like that, someone is able to just somehow recognise me from when I was seven years old."

David went on to call the meme-worthy moment the 'biggest blessing' adding: "There are nothing but positive experiences. We have gotten to do things, see things and go to places we never would have."

The man behind the meme looks totally unrecognisable.
Instagram/@daviddentist

He also revealed that he's had 'some of the most bizarre interactions with strangers' around the time the video was first uploaded.

While we now live in world of constant viral sensations on TikTok, Instagram and Twitter - it's clear that this wasn't always the way the internet worked, especially in the olden times of the 2000s.

David explained: "When it happened it was such a new thing and not only was it new in terms of the internet and the technology but I was only seven, eight, nine, ten.

"So you can only comprehend so much. The video got three million views in three days but I couldn’t comprehend or understand how big of a deal that was," he continued.

Because of this, he revealed he was easily 'able to just go with the flow.'

"It didn’t become a bigger part of me than it was," he added.

"It didn’t become a bigger part of me than it was."
Instagram/@daviddentist

Speaking of the meme's timelessness, David explained: "On the face of it, it is a kid on drugs and it tickles people. You see adults and they are wasted or they are on drugs and you see videos of that all the time."

"I was seven and coming out of surgery," he added. "But I just also think it was the raw emotion of it."

And they most definitely did.

The computer science student concluded: "I didn’t have the ability to withstand what I was feeling so it was raw and the anaesthesia they used on me was ketamine and that is illegal to use on seven year olds now.

"You can’t do that anymore."

Let's hope not.

Featured Image Credit: YouTube / booba1234 / Instagram / @daviddentist

Topics: Social Media, Viral, YouTube

Rhiannon Ingle
Rhiannon Ingle

Rhiannon Ingle is a Senior Journalist at Tyla, specialising in TV, film, travel, and culture. A graduate of the University of Manchester with a degree in English Literature, she honed her editorial skills as the Lifestyle Editor of The Mancunian, the UK’s largest student newspaper. With a keen eye for storytelling, Rhiannon brings fresh perspectives to her writing, blending critical insight with an engaging style. Her work captures the intersection of entertainment and real-world experiences.

Recommended reads

Discovery of ancient 'headless' burial site could finally solve 7,000-year-old mysteryProceedings of the Prehistoric SocietyMeteorologist explains most dangerous US cities to be in as El Niño beginsPhoto by David McNew/Getty ImagesJennifer Lopez makes candid admission to Office Romance co-star about which actors she'd have sex withNoam Galai/Getty Images for NetflixMackenzie Shirilla has new job behind bars as she makes plea for freedomInstagram/@mackenzieshirilla

Advert

Choose your content:

an hour ago
5 hours ago
6 hours ago
  • Noam Galai/Getty Images for Netflix
    an hour ago

    Jennifer Lopez makes candid admission to Office Romance co-star about which actors she'd have sex with

    J-Lo mentioned she was a particular fan of the cast of True Romance

    Entertainment
  • Photo by John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images
    an hour ago

    Man bets MrBeast $1m he can’t make good on ‘faceless’ challenge

    If Mr.Beast didn't have his money or following, would anyone watch him?

    Entertainment
  • Taylor Hill/WireImage
    5 hours ago

    Eve Hewson hits back at nepo baby label as Disclosure Day star opens up on Bono being her dad

    Eve Hewson stars alongside some A-List celebrity talent in Disclosure Day, but her dad is even more famous

    Entertainment
  • David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images
    6 hours ago

    Brooklyn Beckham says he's 'not worked in five years' and admits he 'can come across as annoying sometimes'

    He's tried out a lot of careers throughout the years

    Entertainment
  • What the kid from Stuart Little is up to now as fans realise iconic character is not a mouse
  • Sidemen issue statement after KSI announces he is leaving group
  • David Lammy says ‘his generation is failing young men miserably’
  • KSI announces he is ‘leaving Sidemen’ in emotional statement