If you’re an avid TikTok user, you might have come across the viral ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ trend on your For You Page.
A song from the beloved musical Les Misérables has taken over TikTok, inspiring users to share their daily woes in dramatic fashion.
The viral trend features the hauntingly emotional ‘I Dreamed A Dream,’ performed by Anne Hathaway as Fantine in the 2012 film adaptation of the musical.
‘I Dreamed A Dream’ origin
In the film, Fantine sings ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ after a series of devastating events. She is fired from her job, descends into poverty, and turns to desperate means to survive, including selling her hair and teeth, all to care for her daughter.
The part of the song used in the TikTok trend is one of its most heartbreaking lines: “I had a dream my life would be so different from this hell I’m living.”
Hathaway’s tearful performance captured the despair of a life gone awry, which TikTokers have embraced to add an over-the-top emotional spin to their own relatable grievances.
TikTok trend explained
TikTok users are pairing the sound with everyday frustrations, often exaggerating their despair for comedic effect.
One popular example comes from TikToker sredm0nd, who shared a clip of herself crying and hugging herself to the song with the caption: “Me as soon as the sun starts to go down on Sunday evening,” which earned over 3.1 million views.
Another TikTok by evangraysmith shows him lip-syncing the lyrics while lamenting, “When I want the perfect body but that means I actually have to work out and eat healthy,” garnering over 323,000 views.
TikToker harryoliver_29 joined in with a viral video of his despairing search for sweets in a healthy fridge, captioned: “When healthy me did the food shop and now fatty me is looking for a sweet treat.” This video racked up 3.2 million views.
The ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ trend’s relatability and hilarious theatrical flair have resonated with many users, leading to over 1,955 videos using the sound so far.
It’s just one of the many trends gaining traction on TikTok, alongside the bizarre AI history POV craze and the ‘Bro is not going back home’ meme.