AI video keeps finding new ways to be unsettling, and the latest viral example goes way beyond uncanny valley face-swaps and low effort animation. A video called, “You Know The ’80s Miss You, Right?” is making the rounds on X, and it features big-haired teens dressed up in typical ’80s attire imploring the viewer to “come back” to the 1980s.
They rattle off all the ways in which ’80s culture is better than what 2025 has to offer (mixtapes, neon lights, “cruising down Burnside in your friends Camaro”) all while begging the viewer to somehow abandon their life in the present day and return to the past. So why are people calling it the most “sinister” Boomer-slop of all time? Here’s a recap.
What’s The ‘You Know The ’80s Miss You, Right’ AI Video?
On August 21st, 2025, X user @BrianRoemmele shared a clip captioned, “A message from the 1980s: ‘You know the 80s miss you, right?'” In just three days it pulled over 20 million views and 200,000 likes. The video features AI-generated characters styled like they’ve stepped out of a mall photo booth in 1986: mullets, high-rise jeans, and windbreakers, lounging around diner booths glowing with neon light.
A message from the 1980s:“You know the 80s miss you, right?” pic.twitter.com/olapKlSy0W
— Brian Roemmele (@BrianRoemmele) August 21, 2025
The kids speak directly to the viewer and pile on the nostalgia, talking about the ’80s were all about mixtapes, Friday night hangouts, block parties and being “present in the moment,” while 2025 is fake and hollow. “No one even talks face to face anymore… The world feels real here,” the ’80s teens say, closing with the eerie line, “The ’80s miss you. We all do. Maybe it’s time we came back.”
How Did Internet Users React To The ’80s Miss You’ Video?
Many internet users found the video to be deeply unsettling. On August 22nd, 2025, X user @jeremysmiles tweeted, “this feels like the computer is trying to get me to kill myself,” earning over 190,000 likes in two days. That same day, @BrndnStrssng added, “I don’t love sharing AI but I’m baffled by what the message is supposed to be here… ‘Come back we miss you’ is so sinister,” a post that gathered over 7 million views and 200,000 likes.
Others compared it to horror media: X user @sapphyreblayze posted a still from the analog horror series Local 58, which drew over 118,000 likes.
Also on August 22nd, X user @sam_d_1995 tweeted, “now, let’s take a look at the actual crime rates in the 80’s rather than pure nostalgiaslop,” pointing out how spiking crime rates in ’80s act as a foil for the video’s rosey depiction of life in the ’80s.
What Are Some More Online Reactions To The ’80s Miss You’ Video?
For the full history of the You Know The ’80s Miss You, Right? Video, be sure to check out Know Your Meme’s encyclopedia entry for more information.