- YouTube last week released its annual “Rewind” video, which features more than 130 YouTube stars and celebrities.
- Appearances included Will Smith, Marques Brownlee, Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, John Oliver, and many more.
- In the course of a week, YouTube Rewind 2018 has become the most disliked video in YouTube history. As of Thursday morning, it had over 120 million total views but over 10 million dislikes.
- People are criticizing the video for not including many of YouTube’s biggest and most influential stars, likely because many of them experienced some form of controversy in 2018.
Last Thursday, YouTube released its annual “Rewind” video, which featured more than 100 YouTube stars and celebrities.
But in the course of just one week, “YouTube Rewind 2018” has become the most disliked video in YouTube history.
It’s the fastest video to climb the list of “most dislikes on YouTube.” And in the last 24 hours, it passed the previous record-holder of most YouTube dislikes: Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” a video that had eight years to accrue dislikes.
So, why are people so upset about Rewind 2018?
It all boils down to the video’s intended audience.
People expect YouTube's Rewind videos to be an homage to creators, but given the absence of so many YouTube stars that had "controversial" moments this year, the video appears to be focused on keeping advertisers happy.
That's the only possible explanation for the absence of YouTube's most popular creators, like Felix "Pewdiepie" Kjellberg, Shane Dawson, David Dobrik, and so many others.
When you search for "YouTube Rewind 2018," two of the top three results are negative responses to YouTube's actual video, made by popular YouTube creators.
The Paul brothers, in particular, were notable absentees from "Rewind 2018."
Logan Paul is one of YouTube's most popular faces, but he got himself in hot water for filming a suicide victim in Japan earlier this year. Logan's little brother Jake is even more popular, but the live boxing match between Jake Paul and his YouTube rival KSI wasn't exactly a shining moment for the site's reputation - even if it brought in nearly 1 million live viewers to YouTube at the time.
As The Verge's Julia Alexander put so well, "[YouTube Rewind 2018] feels disingenuous, like YouTube is hiding its uglier side under a carpet while showing guests around."
"YouTube Rewind 2018" shows there is a clear schism between the expectations and reality of YouTube. Viewers and the community at large expected to see all of the people who made their names on YouTube this year, for better or worse. But YouTube only wants to share the people and parts of the site it feels comfortable sharing. That's why Will Smith kicks off the video, even though The Fresh Prince has a fraction of the subscribers that Pewdiepie has.
All that said, not everyone hates YouTube Rewind 2018. The video still has over 2 million likes, and features hundreds of YouTube stars and celebrities from around the world who were filmed in four different locales: Los Angeles, London, Seoul, and Rio De Janeiro. If you're interested in seeing all of the people who did make the video, we spotted every single person so you don't have to.
1. Will Smith — actor and rapper
2. Marques Brownlee — tech reviewer
3. ItsFunneh — gaming videos
4. Tyler "Ninja" Blevins — pro gamer
5. GamingWithKev — comedy and gaming videos
6. Luzu — comedy and gaming videos
7. Nick Eh 30 — "Fortnite" streamer
8. Jubilee Media — videos about social commentary
9. Lachlan — "Fortnite" and gaming videos
10. robleisIUTU — comedy and gaming videos
11. Sofia Castro — comedy videos
12. Liza Koshy — comedy videos
13. Wengie — makes videos about life hacks, DIY, and experiments
14. Bie The Ska — music and comedy videos
15. Dotty TV — comedy videos
16. sWooZie — animated comedy videos
17 and 18. Merrell Twins — comedy and music videos
19. Casey Neistat — vlogging and tech videos
20 and 21. JukiLop — comedy videos
22. Dagi Bee — music, comedy, and beauty videos
23. Michael Dapaah — comedy and music videos
24. Kelly MissesVlog — beauty and comedy videos
25. EnjoyPhoenix — beauty and DIY videos
26. TheKateClapp — comedy videos
27. BongoCat — the meme animated by StrayRogue and DitzyFlama
28 and 29. AsapSCIENCE — science videos
30. Safiya Nygaard — life hacks and beauty videos
31. MsYeah — cooking videos
32 and 33. Bearhug — comedy videos
34 and 35. KayKai Salaider — comedy videos
36. Gongdaesang — comedy videos
37. Molly Burke — vlogger
38. Rosanna Pansino — cooking and DIY videos
39, 40, 41 and 42. The Try Guys — comedy videos
43. Pautips — beauty and lifestyle videos
44. Marshmello — producer and DJ
45, 46 and 47. Yes Theory — lifestyle and comedy videos
48. Mason Ramsey — the famous "Walmart yodeling kid"
49. Adam Rippon — professional figure skater
50. Collins Key — comedy and DIY videos
51. TheOdd1sOut — animated comedy videos
52. Lucas the Spider — animated videos
53. Whindersson Nunes — comedy videos
54, 55 and 56. Los Polinesios — lifestyle and comedy videos
57. illymation — animated story-time videos
58. Tabbes — animated comedy videos
59. Muro Pequeno — vlogger
60. AuthenticGames — "Minecraft" and gaming videos
61 and 62. Diva Depressão — fashion and comedy videos
63. Domics — animated stories and videos
64. Life Noggin — animated web show
65. Trevor Noah — comedian and "The Daily Show" host
66. EroldStory — animated story and comedy videos
67. John Oliver — comedian and "Last Week Tonight" host
68. Lilly Singh — comedy videos
69. Markiplier — gaming videos
70, 71, 72 and 73. Krystal Yam and family from Make-A-Wish Foundation
74. Furious Jumper — gaming and comedy videos
75. Caspar — vlogger
76. Gabbie Hanna — music and comedy videos
77. Sam Tsui — vlogging and music videos
78. Trixie Mattel — drag queen, singer-songwriter, and comedian
79. Katya Zamolodchikova — drag queen, actor, and comedian
80. SHALOM BLAC — fashion, makeup, and vlogging
81. Technical Guruji — tech reviewer
82 and 83. SkinnyIndonesian24 — comedy videos
84. LaurDIY — life hacks and DIY videos
85. Alisha Marie — beauty, lifestyle, comedy, and DIY videos
86. MissRemiAshten — fashion, cooking, and DIY videos
87 and 88. Jordindian — comedy videos
89. NikkieTutorials — makeup and beauty videos
90. Me Poupe! — comedy and lifestyle videos
91. Bilingirl Chika — vlogging and lifestyle videos
92 and 93. Manual do Mundo — vlogging and educational videos
94. julioprofe — educational and instructional math videos
95. Noor Stars — lifestyle and comedy videos
96. Ami Rodriguez — music and comedy videos
97. Luisito Comunica (Rey Palomo) — vlogging and lifestyle videos
98 and 99. GEN HALILINTAR — vlogging and music videos
100. mmoshaya — comedy videos
101. Simone Giertz — inventions and robotics videos
102. Elle Mills — vlogger
103. Rudy Mancuso — comedy and music videos
104. Lele Pons — comedy and music videos
105. Anwar Jibawi — comedy videos
106. Hannah Stocking — comedy videos
107. cherrygumms — gaming videos
108. Desimpedidos — soccer and comedy videos
109. CajuTV — gaming videos
110. LA LATA — vlogging and video interviews
111. 10ocupados — comedy videos
112. Emma Chamberlain — lifestyle and comedy videos
113. James Charles — makeup videos
114. Dolan Twins — comedy videos
115. Bokyem TV — comedy videos
116. Tiên Zombie v4 — gaming and comedy videos
117, 118 and 119. How Ridiculous — experiments and physics videos
120. SamHarveyUK — vlogging and music videos
121. Lyna — gaming and comedy videos
122. gymvirtual — exercise videos
123. Enes Batur — comedy and music videos
124. Yammy — gaming videos
125. FavijTV — gaming and comedy videos
126. Pozzi — gaming videos
127. BB Ki Vines — comedy videos
128. HikakinTV — vlogging and comedy videos
129. FAP TV — funny action videos
130 and 131. Pinkfong and Baby Shark — animal songs for children
132, 133, 134 and 135. Fischer's — adventure and lifestyle videos
136. Primitive Technology — instructional DIY videos
You can watch the entire "Rewind 2018" video below.