Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Garner and more join viral 'Elf on the Shelf' meme

With the internet being pretty much endless bad news about the COVID pandemic, we aren’t surprised that celebrities are all jumping on a viral meme inspired by Elf on the Shelf.

You know the elf we speak of, the one that torments poor parents, who this year are already dealing with enough — a pandemic and off-the-wall kids as a result of it. A few years back, a meme surfaced with the phrase, "You've heard of Elf on the Shelf, now get ready for..." and a photo of something ridiculous like Lil Wayne atop an airplane. This new version shows a celebrity with another celebrity, with a rhyming name, on their shoulder a la the elf.

The recent celebrity ones seem to have stemmed from a Bravo aficionado sharing an image of Pharrell Williams with Garcelle Beauvais on his shoulder, which the The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reposted.

Charlie’s Angels and Pitch Perfect 2 director Elizabeth Banks saw it and it “inspired” her to share her own. It showed Tom Hanks, as Forrest Gump, on Banks.

Reese Witherspoon saw Banks’s and came up with Grease — specifically John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John — on Reese.

Jennifer Garner went with Penn — as in Sean — on Jen.

Mark Ruffalo jumped in with Stark on Mark — a nod to his Marvel Cinematic Universe friend brought to life by Robert Downey Jr.

The queen of Christmas, Mariah Carey kept with the theme, showing Jim Carrey’s Grinch on her shoulder.

Sophie Turner had Constanza on Sansa.

Nicole Kidman put Mick, as in Jagger, on Nic.

Anne Hathaway, known to friends as “Annie,” selected Allison Janney.

Kerry Washington shared Perry-on-Kerry, a funny clown version of Katy.

Washington also posted Pope on Knope, Amy Poehler’s Parks and Recreation character.

Rashida Jones used the opportunity to spotlight the soon-to-be president of MSNBC, who shares her name. “The FIRST BLACK PERSON EVER to run a major cable news network!!” wrote the actess. “I'm so proud to share a name with you and also take this #myelf challenge to the next level. Rashida Jones on Rashida Jones INFINITY. ZOOM IN.”

Here are some more from Sharon Stone, Amy Schumer, Ryan Seacrest and others:

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