Smosh

Smosh () is an American YouTube sketch comedy-improv collective, independent production company, and former social networking site founded by Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox. In 2002, Padilla created a website named "smosh.com" for making Flash animations, and he was later joined by Hecox. They began posting videos on Smosh's YouTube channel in 2005 and quickly became one of the most popular channels on the site. , the main Smosh channel has over 11 billion views and over 26 million subscribers.

Initially making lip-sync videos to cartoon and video game-based songs, Smosh garnered virality for their "Pokémon Theme Music Video"; reaching 24 million views, it became the most-viewed video on YouTube until it was removed from the site due to copyright infringement. Smosh pivoted towards comedic sketches geared towards pop culture media, with Hecox and Padilla portraying various characters. Making series such as ''Food Battle'', ''If X Were Real'' and ''Every lankEver'', Smosh continued to garner online popularity throughout the 2010s. Their sketches progressed in production quality as they included more cast and crew members.

Owned by media company Defy Media starting from 2011, the brand expanded to consist of multiple channels, including a variety channel (Smosh Pit), animation ( Shut Up! Cartoons), and gaming content ( Smosh Games). In 2017, Padilla left the channel to pursue independent ventures and focus on creating solo content. One year later, Defy Media abruptly closed without warning, leading the Smosh cast to become temporarily independent. They subsequently joined Mythical Entertainment after their company was purchased by Rhett & Link in 2019. After four years of ownership under Mythical, Padilla returned to the channel in 2023, and alongside Hecox had bought the company back from Mythical, re-establishing Smosh as an independent entity.

Considered one of the earliest YouTube personalities and content creators, Smosh has achieved various records and accolades. The Smosh channel has experienced three different spans as the most subscribed YouTube channel. Hecox and Padilla were included in the ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 list, and were often included in lists of the highest-paid YouTubers. The Smosh brand has won Webby Awards, Shorty and Streamy Awards.

History

Formation and lip sync videos (2002–2006)

The franchise began when Anthony Padilla built a website in 2002, smosh.com, and made several different Flash animations. He has stated that the name "Smosh" came from an incident where he mistook a friend explaining a mosh pit as a "smosh pit". Padilla created the website's logo through juxtaposing a fast-forward sign and the letter "S" from a Linkin Park-based text font. Later, his friend, Ian Hecox, joined the venture; Padilla and Hecox first met in the sixth grade. They became friends, and quickly discovered their knack for comedy. On November 19, 2005, they joined YouTube and made several videos together, lip syncing the theme songs to ''Mortal Kombat'', ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' and ''Power Rangers'', the last of which was their first video uploaded to the website. At first, these videos were not intended to be posted online, but after they sent them to their friends, they started a YouTube channel.

One of Smosh's earliest videos, "Pokémon Theme Music Video", was released on November 28, 2005. It followed the same style as their other earlier videos, featuring the duo lip-synching the original English theme song for the ''Pokémon'' anime. However, the video instantly became much more popular than any of their other videos. Over the course of its lifetime, it gained over 24 million views, becoming the most-viewed video on all of YouTube at that time. This held that title until being dethroned by Judson Laipply's "Evolution of Dance". It was later removed for copyright infringement.

The success of their ''Pokémon'' video and other videos led Smosh to be featured in the " Person of the Year: You" issue of ''Time'', published December 13, 2006. Due to the channel's continued success, and Smosh's partnership with YouTube, the two recreated the video in November 2010, this time changing the words to be critical of The Pokémon Company taking down the Pokémon theme video.

Initial YouTube success (2006–2011)

Over the course of the next few years, Smosh began to diversify. They started making short YouTube skits, such as their annual video series ''Food Battle'', which shows Hecox using a pink-frosted sprinkled doughnut and Padilla choosing a variety of foods voted on by fans, and ''That Damn Neighbor'', which were primarily filmed in and around a house in Rosemont, California. According to a 2012 interview with '' New Media Rockstars'', Smosh's process for making sketch videos involved Hecox and Padilla brainstorming ideas for sketches, with Hecox writing their ideas into an outline and the duo expanding them into a full script. The duo described their editing and writing skills as primarily self-taught.

In January 2010, Smosh launched the "Smosh Pit" feature, a blog that consists of various pieces of pop-culture trivia, and written comedy. In addition, 2010 saw the channel launch three different Smosh-based web series: ''Ian Is Bored'', which started as a collection of comedic videos by Hecox, but then turned into both Hecox and Padilla making vlog like videos, and renamed ''Smosh Is Bored''; ''Ask Charlie'', where people ask Charlie, from their January 2010 ''Charlie the Drunk Guinea Pig'' video, random questions; and ''Lunchtime with Smosh'', a comedy series featuring Smosh getting and eating food from various places, and answering Twitter questions from their fans on Twitter. Some of Smosh's most popular video series include ''Pokémon in Real Life'' and ''If X Was Real''. The ''If X Was Real'' videos see the duo parody various video games, films and pop culture media while questioning their realism.

Defy Media and Padilla's departure (2011–2018)

In 2011, Smosh was acquired by Alloy Digital (later rebranded to Defy Media), while also enjoying a 40% boost in viewership. In 2012, the duo started three new YouTube channels, ''ElSmosh'', with Smosh videos dubbed in Spanish, '' Shut Up! Cartoons'', with various animated videos, and ''Smosh Games'', with gaming-related content hosted alongside Mariko "Mari" Takahashi, David "Lasercorn" Moss, Matthew Sohinki, and Joshua "Jovenshire" Ovenshire. The pair also ventured into music, creating comedic songs for licensed media such as ''The Legend of Zelda'' and '' Assassin's Creed 3'', among other original compositions. These songs (along with other original songs) have been released in four albums to date – ''Sexy Album'' (2010), ''If Music Were Real'' (2011), ''Smoshtastic'' (2012), and ''The Sweet Sound of Smosh'' (2013). In January 2013, the Smosh channel surpassed Ray William Johnson in subscribers to become the most-subscribed YouTube channel for the third time. Following the achievement, Smosh collaborated with Johnson on a video of his "Equals Three" series. They held this position until August 2013 when they were surpassed by Swedish Let's Player PewDiePie, who also collaborated with the duo shortly after reaching the position. During this period, Smosh participated in YouTube's Comedy Week in May 2013.

In March 2015, Smosh re-launched the Smosh Games Alliance, a multi-channel network where fans join to enjoy network benefits in exchange for a percentage of the ad revenue. That same year the duo announced Noah Grossman, Keith Leak Jr., Olivia Sui, Courtney Miller and Shayne Topp as new regular cast members for Smosh videos. They began appearing in sketches such as the ''Every (Blank) Ever'' series.

In January 2016, a web sitcom was launched on the main Smosh channel. ''Part Timers'' is a comedy-drama which takes place at a fictional children's arcade and pizza place called Pork E. Pine's, which takes inspiration from Hecox's first job at Chuck E. Cheese's. Each episode presents a challenge that the team must overcome to keep the business going. The series features regular Smosh cast members, Grossman (as Pete), Hecox (as Ian), and Padilla (as Anton), in addition to Cat Alter (as Mads), Jade Martz (as Ella), Casey Webb (as Dinger), and Natalie Whittle (as Lori). The series was released every Monday on the Smosh channel from January to May 2016. Also that year, the Smosh cast streamed a live sketch show on YouTube on August 26. Compared to ''Saturday Night Live'', the 90 minute show featured improvisational sketches and fake TV commercials, which Hecox and Padilla stated was an adjustment from their typical scripted comedy. Regarded as the first live sketch show on YouTube, the stream reached 55,000 concurrent viewers and over 1.3 million views.

On June 14, 2017, Padilla announced he would be leaving Smosh to pursue independent video ventures due to a "lack in creative freedom". Hecox stated he would remain with Smosh, adding "I'm really looking forward to taking Smosh to the next phase, and we can't wait for people to see what we have coming up."

Under Mythical Entertainment's ownership (2018–2023)

On November 6, 2018, Defy Media abruptly announced they were shutting down and laying off all its employees. Hecox said that Smosh was not "going away" and that plans were underway to find Smosh a new home. Padilla released a video the following day which went into more detail about his departure from Smosh and his issues with what Defy was doing with their employees and Smosh. He said that he and Hecox sold Smosh to Alloy Digital (which later became Defy Media) for stock, which had no monetary value because the company never went public. Padilla also expressed dissatisfaction with how Defy treated its employees and stated the company exploited them financially, took over his Facebook page, tried to take over his Twitter account, prevented him from joining the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), and that they had pressured them into starting a fundraiser for ''Food Battle: The Game'' before it had even been conceived, something that had at the time led to accusations of exploitation being leveled against himself and Hecox. He also explained that he had not previously shared this information because of worries that it would threaten the job security of his friends. On November 12, Smosh released an update video reaffirming that Smosh was searching for a new owner, and that in the meanwhile, content would continue to be released independently by the Smosh team. The cast clarified that they still had a significant amount of content from before Defy Media's shutdown in post-production. They also did not rule out the possibility of filming new content and releasing it independently, calling such an idea "old school", alluding to YouTube's early days when content was less commercialized.

On February 22, 2019, Smosh was acquired by Mythical Entertainment, a production company founded by fellow YouTube comedians Rhett & Link. A majority of the Smosh cast and crew returned to the company following the acquisition. During this time, Smosh operated out of Mythical Entertainment's Los Angeles office, though later moved into a specially built studio space in Burbank. Smosh also created a new weekly podcast, "SmoshCast", following the announcement.

Smosh created another live show in a similar manner as their 2016 stream, named "Under the Influence". The stream featured the cast performing sketches alongside reenacting several of their segments, "Try Not To Laugh" and "Eat It or Yeet It", while under the influence. The stream aired on June 30, 2022.

Padilla's return and Smosh as an independent venture (2023–present)

On June 20, 2023, Hecox and Padilla announced the latter's return to Smosh after the duo had decided to repurchase a majority stake in Smosh from Mythical Entertainment to become an independent entity again, with Mythical maintaining a minority stake and maintaining involvement in an advisory capacity. With this change, Padilla promoted Alessandra Catanese, the COO and executive producer from his own company Pressalike Productions, as CEO of the new Smosh entity, It was stated that the main Smosh channel would return to a more sketch-oriented output, moving away from the pivot to more improv-based content in the years prior. However, the unscripted Smosh Pit and Smosh Games channels would remain as they were. Following Padilla's return to Smosh, the main channel returned to the sketch comedy format primarily featuring the duo, including revisiting past sketches such as their "Stop Copying Me" video and ''Food Battle''.

On August 16, 2024, Smosh announced ''Bit City'', advertised as "if Smosh did a late-night talk show", through a trailer featuring Hecox, Padilla and ''Bit City'' hosts Angela Giarratana and Chanse McCrary. ''Bit City'' premiered on August 23, 2024.

Channels

Smosh

Smosh is the original and main channel created in November 2005, with current output focusing around the show ''Bit City''.

Smosh Pit

The Smosh Pit channel uploads every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The videos mostly consist of a variety of unscripted formats including game shows and challenges involving the cast. Popular series include ''Try Not to Laugh'', ''Challenge Pit'' and ''Reading Reddit Stories''.

Smosh Games

The Smosh Games channel uploads every Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. The videos consist of playing video games, board games, and card games, with various recurring games and series.

SmoshCast

Smosh's podcast channel currently comprises two shows:

Smosh Mouth, which is hosted by Shayne Topp and Amanda Lehan-Canto. Each episode usually features a distinct theme and a guest from amongst Smosh's cast and production crew.

Lunchtime with Smosh, a more ad-hoc podcast that features Ian and Anthony chatting about what's on their mind while joined by Erin Dougal, a member of Smosh's production crew.

ElSmosh

ElSmosh uploads new Smosh episodes that have been dubbed over in Spanish. The videos are mostly from the main Smosh channel. It was originally created by a fan who dubbed Smosh videos in the language, and Hecox and Padilla hired them.

SmoshAlike

Originally Anthony Padilla's personal channel, it began posting content more frequently after Padilla's departure from Smosh in 2017. Upon his return to owning the Smosh brand with Ian Hecox in 2023, the channel began featuring Smosh cast members while remaining an independent part of Padilla's PressAlike production. On May 5, 2025, the channel rebranded to SmoshAlike, bringing the channel and PressAlike under the Smosh brand.

Other ventures

App and game development

Smosh has branched out into various ventures related to digital media, including app and game development. In early 2010, Smosh created the "iShut Up App" for Android phones as part of a Google sponsorship; it eventually made its way to the iTunes app store. In February 2013, they released the ''Super Head Esploder X'' video game for iOS, which became the most downloaded game in the App Store within its first week. The same year in July, they also started an Indiegogo campaign for an iOS and PC game, ''Food Battle: The Game'', which was based on their characters and the foods used in their annual ''Food Battle'' series. Lasting for 33 days from July 22 to August 24, the campaign raised $259,247 in total over a $250,000 goal, with Hecox and Padilla donating 10% of the funds to the " DoSomething", " Child's Play" and "FEED USA" charities. An action RPG inspired by games such as ''The Legend of Zelda'' and '' The Witcher 2'', the game was released in 2014. Smosh also released another mobile app to access Smosh videos and other content from their website an Xbox One app later the same year.

Books

In 2013, Smosh created ''Smosh Magazine'' which consisted of comics, interviews and behind-the-scenes content. The magazine ran exclusively in the United States for two editions with 40,000 copies produced, alongside a digital download on iTunes. Throughout 2015 and 2016, Smosh partnered with Dynamite Entertainment to publish a comic book and graphic novel series. Comic writers Michael McDermott and Yale Stewart co-wrote the book with Stewart contributing illustration, and Hecox and Padilla were credited for developing the story with Dynamite editor Rich Young. The six-issue series contains the "Super Virgin Squad" story written by McDermott, which chronicles the titular group as possessing superhuman abilities. Stewart also penned "That Damn Neighbor" based on the Smosh web series. The first issue was released in May 2016.

Films

On September 18, 2014, it was announced that a feature-length film starring the duo was in development by AwesomenessFilms; it would be later titled '' Smosh: The Movie'', and was released direct-to-video on July 24, 2015, by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, with Netflix acquiring the film's streaming rights. Directed by Alex Winter from a screenplay by Eric Falconer and Steve Marmel, it stars both Hecox and Padilla as fictionalized versions of themselves, alongside fellow YouTube personalities Jenna Marbles, Grace Helbig, Harley Morenstein, Mark Fischbach, Dominic Sandoval, and the Smosh Games crew, with Shane Dawson appearing in the Unrated version.

Smosh created the film '' Ghostmates'' for YouTube Red that was released on December 14, 2016. Channel collaborator Ryan Finnerty wrote the screenplay with Hecox and Padilla, with Jack Henry Robbins directing the film. Compared by '' IndieWire'' to ''Ghost'' (1990), the film chronicles Hecox's character as a ghost following his accidental death, who becomes the roommate of Padilla's character after the latter moves into his apartment. The film also features a cameo from rapper T-Pain as a ghost.

Philanthropy and media appearances

Smosh participated in the ''Prank It Forward'' series starting in 2014, which focused on raising money for charity with prank-based videos. They interviewed several celebrities in the series, including Emma Watson and Jennifer Lawrence. Proceeds from the videos went to the DoSomething charity, where $1 was donated for every 1000 video views accumulated. In 2017, the Smosh Pit channel released a video as part of a campaign for Defy Media to inform younger audiences of the consequences of drug use, in partnership with the Elks Drug Awareness Program and the Drug Enforcement Agency. The next year, Smosh appeared in a charity stream with The Game Theorists for The Brain and Behavior Research Foundation during Giving Week, and autographed a custom Xbox One console for Microsoft's partnership with Make-A-Wish in the Consoles for Kids charity auction. For the channel's 15th anniversary, Smosh hosted a Twitch charity stream for the First Nations Development Institute which raised $17,000. Members of Smosh also participated in the "Creators for Palestine" fundraiser in July 2024.

Smosh has appeared in various episodes of YouTube Rewind. Hecox and Padilla also appeared as guest judges on the ''Internet Icon'' series throughout 2012 and 2013. The duo appeared in a promotion for '' Watch Dogs'' with Rob Dyrdek in 2014. They also had voice roles in the 2016 animated film ''The Angry Birds Movie'', and appeared in an episode of the ''Epic Rap Battles of History'' web series.

Legacy

Popularity and reception

One of the first personalities to gain popularity on YouTube, Smosh has been regarded as among the most popular channels on the website, and an early example of an Internet celebrity. They have also been credited as pioneers and innovators of the platform. News outlets have referred to the brand as a media empire. Their authenticity was recognized as a factor for their popularity. ''BuzzFeed News'' and ''Variety'' both observed their relatability among audiences and their relationship among their fans. Compared to traditional celebrities, Smosh and other Internet personalities were typically deemed as more engaging and authentic among adolescents. Troy Dreier of ''Streaming Media Magazine'' ascribed their fan base's affinity of the duo to their image "as likeable (if crazy) guys next door." However, author Aaron Duplantier stated that their videos eschewed intimate self-expression, instead focusing on comedic skits.

Their videos have received a positive reception from several outlets. Likening them to ''Saturday Night Live'', Grossman opined that " eir genius... is in their unswerving, unwinking commitment to idiocy." Matheson claimed that their humor worked for its seditious and crude, yet inoffensive nature. She also praised Smosh for Hecox and Padilla's lack of embarrassment or fear, and their enjoyment of "mucking around" as a reason for retaining their viewership. Several outlets highlighted their exaggerated acting style and penchant for juvenile, yet appealing humor. Borden noted their acting style emphasized their personalities over finesse, while Petersen asserted that if one "find their humor juvenile, you're missing the point: It's not for you." Kennedy Unthank of ''Plugged In'' praised the channel's nostalgic value and longevity alongside the duo's friendship. However, he raised concerns of their use of profanities, sexual humor and death in their sketches. Smosh's various cast members have also received praise for their acting style and character work.

Impact and longevity

Among researchers, Smosh's popularity has been regarded as increasing the recognition of the Internet as a creative medium, and they were recognized with other personalities as representing a generation of creators distributing content via social media. Grady Smith of ''Entertainment Weekly'' opined that their success on YouTube "reshape the site into a vast entertainment entity that produces so much more than Web-based novelty acts." Their 2006 video ''Feet for Hands'', which featured the Zvue audio player as part of a promotional deal, was cited as an early example of influencer marketing by journalist Chris Stokel-Walker. Author Kelli S. Burns credited the duo with popularizing the lip-synch video genre in her 2009 book ''Celeb 2.0''. Various content creators have regarded Smosh as an inspiration. YouTubers Jake and Logan Paul were inspired by Smosh to create their first channel, Zoosh, in 2006. Jenn McAllister was likewise inspired to create her channel, writing in her autobiography that their 2007 ''Spiderman, Spiderman'' sketch was the first YouTube video she watched. Musician and YouTuber Emma Blackery also regarded Smosh as an influence.

Smosh has been noted for their focus on internet-based ventures and longevity in internet popularity by various outlets. In a 2015 '' CNET'' interview, writer Joan E. Solsman attributed their popularity to the early timing of their YouTube presence. Dorothy Pomerantz of ''Forbes'' claimed a similar viewpoint regarding their beginnings in a 2013 article, describing them as a "purely digital breed of star." Both ''Fast Company'' and ''Forbes'' highlighted their early diversification into online media as opposed to traditional media, with the former outlet recognizing such expansion as a realization of the changes in YouTube's algorithm. ''Business Insider'' included them in a list of early YouTube personalities with sustained popularity in 2015. A 2017 Tubefilter article mentioned that compared to early YouTube creators who have since faded into obscurity, Smosh continued to upload content while expanding their brand. The same year, a ''Mashable'' article also remarked on their lasting popularity in comparison to other YouTube content creators; writer Saba Hamedy claimed that the duo "still haven't fallen out of the internet's favor. Ten years in and that's saying something: viral stars don't often survive their fan's short attention spans."

Various commentators noted Smosh's legacy following Padilla's return to the channel. NBC News listed Smosh as among the original YouTube channels to return in 2023, noting fan enthusiasm for the return of "classic Smosh". Morgan Sung of TechCrunch claimed that their reunion as an independent entity was "setting the precedent for creators to own and define their contents' legacy", and regarded it as a victory for content creators. '' TheGamers Jade King similarly considered Smosh's return to be a "rare victory" for both YouTube and the Internet, reflecting on the duo's friendship and the brand's history.

Accolades and achievements

Smosh has been awarded various accolades throughout their career. Hecox and Padilla were both listed in the ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 list in 2012 and 2014 for the entertainment category. The same outlet has listed the Smosh brand as among the highest-paid YouTube personalities throughout the 2010s – in 2015, 2016 and 2017. In a 2014 survey from the University of Southern California published by ''Variety'', they were ranked the #1 most influential personality among U.S. teenagers, listed ahead of celebrities including Jennifer Lawrence and Leonardo DiCaprio. They would place #5 in a similar survey the following year. '' NewMediaRockstars'' included Smosh at #27 in their 2015 list of the top 100 YouTube channels. The same year, Hecox and Padilla were among the first internet personalities to obtain sculptures from the Madame Tussauds wax museum, alongside Jenna Marbles, Zoella and Alfie Deyes. In May 2025, VidCon announced that Smosh will be included in their inaugural Hall of Fame, dedicated to honoring content creators.

In addition to once holding the most-viewed video on YouTube with their ''Pokémon'' theme song, Smosh has held multiple records on the site. In 2017, they were listed in the ''Guinness World Records'' book as the most-subscribed comedy channel. They have held the record for the most-subscribed YouTube channel in three periods – May to June 2006, August 2007 to September 2008, and January to August 2013. Smosh was the first YouTube channel to reach ten million subscribers, and received the YouTube Diamond Creator Award. From 2006 to 2017, it was the only channel to consistently remain within the top-ten most subscribed list.

Current cast members

Discography

References

Primary sources

External links

*

{{Authority control

2002 establishments in California
2019 mergers and acquisitions
American comedy duos
American musical duos
American YouTube groups
Comedians from California
American comedy YouTubers
Let's Players
American music YouTubers
Number-one YouTube channels in subscribers
Performing groups established in 2002
Shorty Award winners
YouTube channels launched in 2005
YouTube channels
American YouTube vloggers