There are many unexpectedly weird results of Canada’s legalization of marijuana. For instance, the government teaching people how to roll a joint. Having surprisingly candid conversations about weed with your parents. The bizarre promotions many companies are offering, from Uber and Lyft’s “don’t drive high” discounts to Pizza Pizza naming itself “your munchies headquarters.”
But one of the best results is a familiar face showing up in the Toronto police’s “don’t narc on your neighbours now that weed is legal” campaign: the same stock photo model who featured prominently in last summer’s “distracted boyfriend” meme.
Here’s What To Know About The “Distracted Boyfriend” Meme
His photo is being used as part of a campaign against unnecessary 911 calls. Now that weed is legal, the police need to remind people not to call them when people legally use or grow marijuana, apparently.
The image appears alongside photos of other non-emergencies such as people getting lost and wondering what to do with spoiled food during a power outage.
“Do not call police for this,” the ad reads, in a tone you can almost imagine coming out of the mouth of a frustrated cop.
Toronto Star reporter Wendy Gillis noticed the model when she was reported on the police’s response to legalization on Tuesday.
In case you don’t remember him from the photo that launched a thousand memes last year:
It isn’t surprising that he’s been seen in various photographs. Companies behind stock photos typically shoot a wide variety of scenarios. The only thing that’s unusual about this model is that now he’s recognizable so it’s hard to see him in any other light aside from being “the boyfriend.”
The actual model’s identity is unknown, but he was interviewed by New York magazine under his stage name, “Mario,” last year.
“As we are working really hard to give our clients the best quality photos we can make, I do not really have the time to follow these things,” he said of the memes, in what potentially seemed like charmingly broken English. “But for what I have seen, I can say that it’s crazy what people can imagine.”
