> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # The Meme Glorification of Luigi Mangione - URL: https://hyperallergic.com/the-meme-glorification-of-luigi-mangione/ - Published: 2024-12-11T22:11:45.000Z - Updated: 2025-11-24T16:20:04.000Z - Description: Gen-Z’s shared generational status with the suspected UnitedHealthcare CEO assassin and frustrations with the US healthcare system have led to an outpouring of sardonic reactions. - Author: Isa Farfan - Tags: Art, Luigi Mangione, Memes, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 09:36 (2023, 2024, part 2) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/file.jpg) Luigi Mangione portrayed as the "patron saint of health care justice" (all screenshots Isa Farfan/*Hyperallergic*, via [@commiepsychologist1](https://www.threads.net/@commiepsychologist1/post/DDa4ZGfN3ut?xmt=AQGz95e2CpPdV7Z90N7J3SZx7HTX4SulhgS2HbIqlqaLyg&ref=hyperallergic.com) on Threads) This past week, I’ve practically caused a spasm in my eyes from staring at media coverage of the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Now that new developments have slowed following the identification of 26-year-old Luigi Mangione as a suspect in the assassination, meme makers across social media platforms have taken to glorifying the Gen-Z computer science nerd-turned-person of interest in a high-profile American killing. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi9.jpg) It was a McDonald's employee who phoned in the tip that led to Mangione's arrest, according to police. (meme via @[adoptapet\_77](https://x.com/adoptapet%5F77/status/1866290480474210316?ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) Something about the shooting felt intertwined with my life from the outset — possibly because it occurred not far from buildings where I’ve worked in Midtown Manhattan, or because it was the CEO of the insurance company I receive care through who was killed. The targeted killing was also the first instance of a sensationalized crime I could link my social circles to through social media. When Mangione was [charged](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/luigi-mangione-charged-unitedhealthcare-ceo-shooting/?ref=hyperallergic.com) with the healthcare executive’s murder, I found his Instagram and quickly discovered mutual connections. I turned to his GoodReads account, a platform on which I often share my book reviews, and I casually compared and contrasted our tastes in literature. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi1-3.jpg) The pixel quality of this image really gets me. (screenshot via [@equine\_\_dentist](https://x.com/equine%5F%5Fdentist/status/1866232773045866862?s=19&ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi2-1.jpg) Interesting timing. (screenshot via [@alberna](https://x.com/albernaj/status/1866517218311217292?s=19&ref=hyperallergic.com)j on X) These are tangential and imagined connections, but a phenomenon arises from the knowledge that the alleged killer is a member of the Gen-Z generation: Young people feel closer to a suspected killer who once occupied their same digital subcultures than they do to the slain executive of a massive corporation. Emerging from that sentiment is a humor that has [fascinated](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/05/nyregion/social-media-insurance-industry-brian-thompson.html?ref=hyperallergic.com) the media. The alleged details of the case, including the engravings on the shell casings, monopoly money left behind, the suspect’s purported understanding of post-9/11 surveillance in New York City, his apparent [flirting](https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/10/us/luigi-mangione-shooter-unitedhealthcare-ceo/index.html?ref=hyperallergic.com) with the desk attendant of a youth hostel, and the get-away electric bike all pointed to someone young, at least by the standards of my circles. As a friend texted in a group chat I’m in: “I just knew I’d have mutuals with this guy once they caught him.” ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi4.jpg) And I still want to try it for some reason. (screenshot via [@RohitaKadambi ](https://x.com/RohitaKadambi/status/1866534517454017018?s=19&ref=hyperallergic.com)on X) Gen-Z’s shared generational status with Mangione, combined with frustrations over American healthcare insurance practices and widespread desensitization from chronic exposure to violent imagery, including the murder of George Floyd and images of Israel’s war on Gaza, might explain the sardonic online reactions to Thompson’s killing. As of this writing, “Mangione” is the top trending topic on X. Chalked up to “[hate](https://www.nbcnews.com/investigations/insurance-executives-murder-sparks-online-praise-hate-rcna183017?ref=hyperallergic.com)” by some, the saint-style portraiture, jokes about conjugal visits, fake alibis, jabs at Italian heritage, and comments praising Mangione’s appearance and intelligence barfed up by social media users are an intimate glimpse into how Gen-Z metabolizes the intragenerational suspect of a politicized crime. Almost immediately following Thompson’s murder, [X users](https://x.com/boey%5Fj9/status/1864688454434541879?ref=hyperallergic.com) drew attention to an Anthem Blue Cross policy update that sought to place limits on coverage for anesthesia. Following the online backlash, the provider [reversed](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-care/anthem-blue-cross-blue-shield-time-limits-anesthesia-surgery-rcna183035?ref=hyperallergic.com) that policy, yielding a slew of knowing memes. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi6.jpg) Authorities have released several images of Mangione in custody. (screenshot via [@Roco\_\_23](https://x.com/Roco%5F%5F23/status/1866524958383595852?ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) Seemingly devoid of sympathy for the CEO’s death, memes glorifying Mangione alternatively function as symbols of mass solidarity with those who have [died](https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2009/09/new-study-finds-45000-deaths-annually-linked-to-lack-of-health-coverage/?ref=hyperallergic.com) as a result of inadequate healthcare access. Thompson’s killing brought healthcare, which was [rarely](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/03/17/health-care-not-on-trump-biden-agenda-2024/72551420007/?ref=hyperallergic.com) discussed in this year’s presidential debates, briefly into the feeds of millions of Americans. For a brief moment following Thompson’s murder, major media outlets propelled complaints against UnitedHealthcare to the forefront, including a class-action lawsuit accusing the company of using an algorithm that “[systematically den\[ies\] claims](https://www.statnews.com/2023/11/14/unitedhealth-class-action-lawsuit-algorithm-medicare-advantage/?ref=hyperallergic.com)” of Medicare plan holders. Below are many more examples of social media users’ reactions to the arrest of Luigi Mangione — I'll let you decide whether they're cruel or meritorious. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi8.jpg) Low-quality Beyoncé video! (screenshot via [@willfulchaos](https://x.com/willfulchaos/status/1866556793737859526?ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi10.jpg) The release of Magione's identity sparked commentary praising his appearance. (screenshot via [@feistyfrank](https://x.com/feistyfrank/status/1866201821238202653?ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi3.png) This image and others like it compare Luigi Mangione to Jesus. (image via @\_hisnameisjavi on [X](https://x.com/%5Fhisnameisjavi/status/1866431991975227873?s=19&ref=hyperallergic.com)) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi7.jpg) A reference to *Jennifer's Body* (2009) in which Megan Fox's character kills boys (screenshot via [@bimboyugari](https://x.com/bimboyugari/status/1866261195293864254?ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi12.jpg) Looks real to me. (screenshot via [@mfsgottenshook](https://x.com/mfsgottenshook/status/1866249753761349849?ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi13.jpg) Certo. (screenshot via on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi14.jpg) Great alibi! (screenshot via [@francisxwolf](https://x.com/francisxwolf/status/1866618667552706637?ref=hyperallergic.com) on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi-15.jpg) The only thing missing is Moo Deng. (screenshot [@xiu\_shoegaze](https://x.com/xiu%5Fshoegaze/status/1866700628673827210?ref=hyperallergic.com) via on X) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2024/12/luigi16.jpg) A cute scene from (*500) Days of Summer* (2009) (screenshot via [@the\_political\_compass ](https://www.instagram.com/p/DDXPHCKOcir/?img%5Findex=5&igsh=MTJ4aGFmb3RoOXZmcw%3D%3D&ref=hyperallergic.com)on Instagram)