Gen Z is making memes while missiles are flying, WW3 trends

Global crisis? Gen Z’s response is worrying about outfit ideas and Kesha remixes.

Fears of World War III spiraled across TikTok, Instagram and X this week after Israel’s preemptive strike against Iran — sparking a surge in panic posts, jokes about a military draft and doomsday memes. 

This week alone, “is the US going to war” searches skyrocketed nearly 5,000%, while searches for the phrase “World War III” shot up almost 2,000%, according to Google Trends. 

On social media though, the vibe is less “duck and cover” and more “get ready with me to be bombed.”

One TikTok video with nearly 10 million views shows a fleet of helicopters flying overhead with the caption plastered across the page, “Wdym WW3 has started,” or “What do you mean WW3 has started,” as Kesha’s “Blow” blares in the background.

And the comments are peak Gen Z: “Is this gonna affect my SHEIN order” and “I wanted a summer glow up, not a summer blow up.”

Since the two warring countries began trading deadly missile strikes June 13, TikTok videos tagged “WW3” have pulled in millions of views, with users stitching together footage from Gaza, Tel Aviv and even Hollywood-produced war scenes — all set to trending sounds and dramatic overly-edited effects.

Another viral post showed a compilation of camo-inspired outfits with the caption, “Outfit ideas for WW3” — reflecting a growing TikTok trend where Gen Z imagines what they’d wear on the front lines.

The chaos kicked into overdrive after a deceptively named X account, which appeared to be Iranian state media, warned that “everyone will feel it.”

The ominous phrase from @IRIran_Military, which uses the name Daily Iran Military but is not an official account, spread like wildfire.

“Tf did Iran mean by ‘EVERYBODY will feel it,’” one TikToker posted, racking up more than 1 million likes before it was taken down. 

And while the memes are absurd, the anxiety behind them is not.

Reddit threads like “Is WW3 slowly happening?” and “Do you think world war 3 is a real possibility?” have been flooded with nervous users in recent days.

“Did WW3 just start” one X user posted on June 12, racking up 21 million views and comments like “We should all get back with our ex” and “It’s time.”

“Me trying to go about my day like WW3 isn’t just around the corner,” read one Instagram post, paired with a crying screenshot of Euphoria’s Sydney Sweeney.

For some, it’s déjà vu.

A similar panic over fears of World War III struck in 2020 after a US airstrike took out Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.

Still, Gen Z is processing it the only way they know how — by turning global dread into viral content.

“Watching Gen Z cope with a potential world war (again) with humor, then remembering how memes desensitize us,” one post admitted.

Or, as another put it: “We didn’t actually mean ‘this summer will be bomb’ literally.”