The latest trend amongst influencers is “deinfluencing.”

‍Depending on whom you ask, deinfluencing is either about influencers sharing products they don’t like, or it’s about influencers recommending alternatives for those products. Either way, the underlying goal is a vague attempt at curbing overconsumption. The trend has drawn a fair amount of criticism in the weeks since it has taken off on TikTok, primarily because it still involves influencers providing beauty product recommendations, albeit for cheaper products instead of popular and/or expensive alternatives. 

Alyssa Stephanie, a creator whose deinfluencing video from late January is one of the most-viewed within this category, with 5.4 million views, posted a follow-up video in which she mused on the inherent irony of deinfluencing. In the original, she recommended more affordable alternatives to cult favorites like the Dyson Airwrap and the Olaplex range of hair care products. She shared that the popularity of that video led to dozens of brands reaching out to her asking about the possibility of a collaboration. 

‍While she hopes the deinfluencing trend will encourage brands to reassess how they approach influencer partnerships and lead to more authentic endorsements, the fact that so many brands saw her video recommending affordable alternatives for popular products as an opportunity for collaboration suggests that the “deinfluencing” trend has already lost its opportunity to curb consumption. Instead, it is becoming just another tool for brands to promote products they think “consumption-conscious” people will buy. 

TikTok fan edits are more mainstream than ever

In early February, TikTok fan edits—videos of celebrities (often footage from TV shows or movies) edited to music—further cemented themselves in the public consciousness thanks to a Saturday Night Live sketch featuring Pedro Pascal and Sarah Paulson. 

‍Fan edits had made a splash last year following the release of the Netflix series Wednesday. A fan/creator changed the soundtrack of a scene featuring actress Jenna Ortega from the original (“Goo Goo Muck” by The Cramps) to  a sped-up version of “Bloody Mary” by Lady Gaga. This single edit of Ortega dancing went viral, causing swathes of the public to associate that song with the show—despite it never having featured on it. The edit also led to a popular TikTok dance and caused Lady Gaga’s song, originally released in 2011, to reappear on the charts. It has also led to rumors of a Lady Gaga cameo in the second season of the show.

‍In the SNL sketch, Pascal plays a confused teacher who has learned that his students have made “thousands of fancams” of him. Paulson appears as a second teacher and proclaims, “He's Daddy. I'm Mommy. And we're all a happy family.” These titles refer to the way certain corners of the internet, including those who make fan edits, have dubbed Pascal and Paulson with these titles, which the stars have clearly embraced. 

‍Many on TikTok suspect that the sketch was inspired by the viral success of a Pedro Pascal edit that was posted on January 21 by user dvcree. The video features a scene from the 2017 movie Kingsman: The Golden Circle re-edited with Shaggy’s 2002 hit song “Hey Sexy Lady.” The video has been viewed over 13 million times and has received over 1.8 million likes, quickly becoming the quintessential Pedro Pascal edit on the app. While some studios, production companies and celebrities have already embraced fan edits as a marketing tool, I suspect that the newfound, and far more widespread, awareness gained from the SNL sketch means that we can expect to see more corporate-branded fan edits in the future.