By Kailyn Huynh & Katelynn Luu
Dream. You’ve seen his name and heard his voice, yet his face remained a mystery… until now.
Dream, whose real name is Clay, started his Youtube channel in 2014 but began to upload consistently in 2019. With viral videos such as his “Minecraft Manhunt series,” Dream was able to amass a current following of 30 million subscribers on Youtube.
After years of creating content without showing his face, Dream finally posted a highly anticipated face reveal video on Youtube.
He explained the reason for his reveal in the video.
“[George is] my best friend. He’s been in the UK trying to get a visa to come to America… and move in with me and Sapnap,” Dream said. “My goal was to start doing things, get out, meet creators, say hi to my friends… be an actual creator, be a person.”
Since then, his face has been everywhere. Despite the celebratory reason behind this reveal, some viewers responded maliciously.
Before the face reveal, Dream only described a few of his features, including his height, hair color and eye color. Fans used this information to create images in his likeness, which varied in accuracy.
However, just because Dream’s appearance does not match their imagination, this is no reason to spread hate.
The hashtags #HesUgly and #Keepthemaskon went trending on Twitter soon after Dream posted the video. Derogatory tweets using the tags insulted Dream’s appearance and compared him with conventionally unattractive characters.
Widespread hate of Dream’s face reveal is not unexpected, as he mentions in the video. Not only did he face hostility from people who dislike him and his content, but also from disappointed fans.
“Make your edits, haters,” Dream said. “I’ll laugh at the funny ones and… that’s about it.”
However, the reason for the negative responses stems from much more than resentment towards Dream.
With the advancement of technology, it is becoming more and more common to edit one’s appearance in photos or videos posted on the internet. Often, these edits and filters look so seamless that it is difficult to realize that they skew from reality.
As these edited posts become more mainstream, beauty standards have risen to nearly unattainable levels. Distaste for those who do not meet the standards has also risen. These ideals are even more intensified for a streamer like Dream with a large following.
Despite his statements saying that he never claimed to be good-looking, the fanart of Dream portrayed him as a very attractive person. In addition to the theories and anticipation leading up to his face reveal, this increased the public’s high expectations for his appearance. These expectations led to people scorning Dream when his looks disappointed them.
Many support the hate centered around Dream’s reveal because of the controversies he faces. He did not stream during June 2022 after promising to donate the money he would earn from streaming on Twitch during Pride Month to the Trevor Project, upsetting fans. Some also accuse him of queerbaiting with fellow content creator Georgenotfound due to their flirting and the popular fictional romantic pairing between them known to fans as “Dreamnotfound.” Furthermore, resurfaced videos show a person suspected to be Dream saying slurs and making racist comments. These allegations lead people to believe that Dream deserves the hate and should not have a platform due to his homophobia and racism.
However, the malicious responses to Dream’s face reveal do nothing to hold him accountable for his actions; all they do is normalize hate and spread insecurity regarding body image. The effects of criticizing his looks expand beyond Dream. Some have personally connected his face reveal to a symbol of overcoming their insecurities and learning to be comfortable without the protection of filters and photoshop.
Certain viewers posted on social media addressing how the hate on the internet has also negatively affected them.
Tiktok user Brookliant posted about how she shares a similar jawline to Dream and how the animosity that dominated Twitter worsened her insecurities.
“Remember your words hurt, no matter who you intended them for,” Brookliant said.
As a streamer, Dream has already adjusted to hostility and is aware of the hate he faces. For others, this backlash prevents them from being comfortable with their own bodies, fearing they may receive the same bitter judgment.
Despite the mass of hate, some have stuck up for Dream.
“For someone like him to have an insane fanbase, that took guts [to do a face reveal],” said Youtube user TammytheRanger.
Dream himself had a positive message to share with viewers, encouraging them not to place so much value on appearances.
“This channel is living proof that anyone can do anything. Anyone can be under the mask,” Dream said. “I don’t want my face reveal to take away from that fact.”
There is no way to measure beauty, nor to truly determine whether someone is good-looking or not. The internet can be harmful, so it is important to remember what message you are spreading the next time you hit post.
