The Nikos Giannopoulos White House Portrait meme originated in June 2017 when Nikos Giannopoulos, the Rhode Island Teacher of the Year, visited the Oval Office to meet President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump. While the photo was meant to be a standard official portrait, Giannopoulos stole the show by striking a sassy pose while holding a black lace fan and wearing a rainbow pride pin. The image immediately went viral on social media, praised as a bold act of queer visibility and defiance. It quickly evolved into a meme template used to represent 'main character energy,' being extra in formal situations, or overshadowing everyone else in the room with sheer confidence and style.