‘I Like Turtles’ Kid Jonathon Ware: Where the Viral 2007 Meme Icon Is Today
Remember 2007? You were probably scrolling through MySpace, discovering YouTube rabbit holes and forwarding links that would become the building blocks of internet culture as we know it. Somewhere in that glorious chaos, a 17-second clip of a kid in zombie face paint became permanently lodged in your brain.
If the words “I like turtles” just triggered an involuntary smile, congratulations — you’re one of millions who helped turn Jonathon Ware into one of the internet’s earliest meme icons. And nearly two decades later, he’s got some thoughts about all of it.
The Moment that Launched a Meme
The original clip was almost absurdly simple. Ware, a young boy at an arts festival called the Rose Festival in Portland, Oregon, had just gotten his face painted like a zombie. A local news reporter asked him about the paint job. His response: “I like turtles…”
That was it. Seventeen seconds. No script, no setup — just a kid being wonderfully, unexplainably random on live television. The moment gained widespread attention across early social media platforms and turned Ware into “Turtle Boy” or the “Zombie Kid.” The clip eventually led to media appearances, including on The O’Reilly Factor and Tosh.0.
Why He Really Likes Turtles
For years, you probably wondered: What was that kid thinking? In a 2023 interview with Yahoo Entertainment, Ware finally pulled back the curtain — and the answer is exactly as pure as you’d hope.
“Seriously, I just like turtles,” he said. “A kid’s mind wanders and goes, Oh s***, what am I gonna say on a news channel? I wasn’t nervous or shaking or anything. I was just like, well, I guess I’ll say, ‘I like turtles.’”
He also offered a perfect analogy for the iconic nature of his one-liner.
“It still makes me laugh,” Ware, now 29, told the outlet in 2023. “It’s like in the Marvel films when Groot says, ‘I am Groot.’ That’s me, except ‘I like turtles.’”
The Full-Circle TMNT Moment
Here’s where it gets really good. In 2023, Ware appeared in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, where he repeated his famous line. If ever there was a cameo written in the stars, this was it.
Ware described the opportunity as a return to the public eye after years of staying private, and his reasoning for stepping back into the spotlight was genuinely heartwarming.
“If I can make someone laugh, smile or change their mood and make them have a better day, I’m all for it. That’s what it is about and that’s why I did it,” he told Yahoo Entertainment.
“I thought, you know, maybe people can relieve some stress because they’ll be like, ‘Oh my god, he’s back.’ That’s what I was hoping would come out of it anyway, for people to say, ‘Is this 2007 again? Look, he’s all grown up — but he hasn’t changed!’”
Life As a Grown-Up Meme Legend
Following the film appearance, Ware created social media accounts for the “Turtle Boy” character on platforms including TikTok and Instagram, with plans to share new content.
“After I did all this promotion work for the movie, I created accounts on TikTok and Instagram for the character: the Turtle Boy,” he said.
His TikTok is @jontheturtle, and his Instagram @turtleboy2007 is now private.
As for his approach to content, Ware isn’t interested in flooding your feed.
“I’m 26 now,” he said back in 2023 to Yahoo. “I’m more confident and have great ideas,” he says. “I’m not using [social media] all in one shot. I’m giving you guys a little tiny piece here and there, you know, I’m not gonna be posting constantly. That’s part of the character. It’s mysterious, nobody knows about it.”
And yes — his personal life has its own running joke. He has a wife who gets a kick out of his viral fame: “She finds it hilarious. She’ll bombard me 10 times a day to say ‘I like turtles.’”
Why He Waited So Long
For those wondering where Ware was all those years between the original clip and his big return, the answer is straightforward. He has said he originally preferred to stay out of the public eye due to privacy concerns but has since become more comfortable engaging with his viral identity.
“I just wanted my privacy,” he said. “I wanted to wait until I was older, more mature and developed to see where [Turtle Boy] would go, and how my mind would develop creatively.”
Some things from 2007 didn’t age well. This one did.
This article was created by content specialists using various tools, including AI.
