The phrase “Not My Grandpa” first appeared as a soundbite on TikTok in late October 2024, lifted from an obscure indie holiday short film titled The Third Stocking. The film, which premiered at a small digital festival in Austin, stars young actress Zoey Zimmer as Chloe, a cynical 22-year-old who discovers that her beloved, recently deceased grandfather was not her biological relative.
In the clip that broke the internet, Zimmer’s character stares at an old photograph and whispers to her best friend, “That’s not my grandpa. It never was. So why do I miss him?”
The line was supposed to be a dramatic turning point. Instead, the internet did what it does best: it repurposed the raw emotion for absurdist humor. Within a week, the “Not My Grandpa” sound had been used in over 400,000 videos—ranging from pet owners revealing that their “cat’s real father is the neighbor’s orange tabby” to people discovering their favorite coffee shop switched oat milk brands.
But then, the meme collided with the holidays. And that’s when Zoey Zimmer herself decided to join the fun.
By [Author Name] – Lifestyle & Entertainment Editor
Every holiday season, the entertainment industry tries to predict the next viral moment. Will it be a Mariah Carey resurgence? A heartwarming Hallmark trope? In 2024, however, the universe delivered something far stranger and far more brilliant: a blend of deadpan Gen Z satire, a fictional grandfather named “Not My Grandpa,” actress Zoey Zimmer, and a fragmented meme simply known as “Santa Is Cu…”
If you have scrolled through TikTok, Instagram Reels, or even X (formerly Twitter) in the last 72 hours, you have seen the face. You have heard the line. But unless you are deeply embedded in the lifestyle corner of the internet where irony meets genuine emotional storytelling, you might be asking: What is actually happening?
Let’s break down the three pillars of this bizarre, heartwarming, and utterly addictive new piece of holiday pop culture.
Unlike many viral stars who shy away from the chaos, Zoey Zimmer (23, NYU Tisch graduate, and self-described “therapist of the family”) has leaned in. In a rare lifestyle interview this week with Vulture’s entertainment vertical, Zimmer explained that she started posting as her character Chloe full-time on a burner account called @notmygrandpa_official.
“The line was supposed to be about found family and grief,” Zimmer said, laughing over Zoom from her Brooklyn apartment, which she has decorated with a Franken-tree (half Christmas, half Hanukkah). “But then someone edited my face onto the Grinch, and I thought, Oh, this is the role I was meant for.”
Zimmer’s genius move was to stay in character. For the past month, her TikTok feed has consisted of Chloe navigating the holidays:
The result is a masterclass in character-driven lifestyle content. Zimmer has blurred the line between a one-off indie film role and a persistent, interactive holiday persona. She is not playing Zoey. She is Chloe, the girl with a fake grandpa and very real holiday trauma.
And that brings us to the third, most confounding piece of the puzzle.
Just when you thought you understood the “Not My Grandpa” universe, a new clip emerged. In it, Chloe (Zoey Zimmer) is sitting by a fireplace, holding a half-empty mug of hot cocoa. She leans toward the camera and begins to say:
“Santa is cu—”
Then, the video cuts out. The word is never finished.
What was she going to say?
The internet erupted. Entertainment blogs called it “the Lost finale of TikTok.” Lifestyle columnists debated whether it was a commentary on the commodification of childhood wonder. Meanwhile, Zoey Zimmer has remained silent on the phrase—except for one cryptic post: a photo of a letter addressed to “The North Pole,” signed “Not His Granddaughter.”
The incomplete sentence “Santa Is Cu…” has become the ultimate Rorschach test for holiday entertainment. Gen Z uses it to mock the over-commercialization of Christmas. Millennials use it to express existential dread about becoming their parents. Boomers, confused, simply ask “Cu… what? Cupid?”
$$ \textSample Title: A Tale of Unexpected Family $$
In the heart of a bustling city, an unexpected family bond formed, changing lives forever. "Not My Grandpa" was what Zoey Zimmer often joked about when her grandmother introduced her to her new companion, an elderly man with a penchant for humor and a heart of gold.
As Zoey navigated her teenage years, she found solace in the most unlikely of friendships. Her grandmother, seeing the loneliness in Zoey's eyes, decided it was time to introduce her to someone who could offer more than just companionship.
And so, Zoey met him - her grandmother's new partner, who had a story to tell and laughter to share. Despite initial reservations, Zoey found herself warming up to him, especially during Christmas, when his quirky sense of humor shone through in his rendition of "Santa Cock Is Cute," a phrase that became a family joke for years to come.
By [Lifestyle Contributor]
For decades, the cultural script for the holidays has been painfully predictable. You go home, you see the family, you eat the casserole, and you listen to your grandpa tell the same story about the blizzard of ’78. In the world of entertainment and lifestyle content, the "Holiday Season" was strictly the domain of the wholesome, the vanilla, and the platonic.
Enter Zoey Zimmer.
If you haven’t caught the viral wave sweeping across TikTok, Instagram Reels, and Gen Z group chats, you are likely still operating under the assumption that Santa is a grandpa. Zoey Zimmer, a rising digital creator and lifestyle commentator, is here to shatter that illusion with two of the most provocative, hilarious, and surprisingly relatable mantras of the year: "Not My Grandpa" and "Santa Is Cuffing Season."
As of this writing, there are three prevailing theories about the “Santa Is Cu…” cliffhanger:
In a recent Instagram Live, when a fan asked, “Will you ever tell us what Santa is?” Zimmery simply smiled, held up a candy cane, and said: “Ask not my grandpa.”
Then she ended the stream.
So, how does one actually live out the "Not My Grandpa / Santa Is Cuffing Season" lifestyle without alienating their entire family? Zoey offers a three-step guide in her paid newsletter (excerpted here with permission):
1. The Decorative Detachment Take the "grandpa" out of your aesthetic. Toss the needlepoint stockings. Burn the ceramic gnomes. Zoey’s lifestyle line (launching this November) features "Cuffing Season" ornaments: Santa handcuffs, a man in a red suit holding a martini, and a Christmas tree shaped like a bicep. "You can honor the vibe without honoring the blood relation," she says.
2. The Dialogue When your actual Grandpa asks why you didn’t sit on the mall Santa’s lap, Zoey recommends the "Smile and Redirect." Say: "I’m saving myself for the real Santa, Grandpa. The one who delivers after midnight." Your grandpa will be confused. Your cousins will high-five you.
3. The Entertainment Diet Zoey curates a "Not My Grandpa" watchlist: Die Hard (Santa is a hostage, not a hero), Bad Santa (the authentic anti-grandpa), and The Night Before (Seth Rogen as the reindeer). For the "Cuffing Season" vibe, she recommends Love Actually (but only the parts with the porn body doubles) and literally any Hallmark movie where Santa is played by an actor under 40.
