Millennial Dads vs. Boomer Dads: Viral Video Illustrates the Funny Differences Between Generations
YouTube comedians Taylor Calmus of Dude Dad and Myles Montplaisir of You Betcha are on a mission to bring more laughter into the world, and they're doing just that with a new clip that's going viral. In the wake of the world discovering that Gen Z has a major beef with their grandparents' generation, the Baby Boomers, Calmus and Montplaisir decided to illustrate another generational divide. Now that many Millennials are parents themselves, the way they're raising their kids looks quite a bit different from the way they were raised by their Boomer parents.
The clip is not unlike one that went viral this summer called "1980's Mom Vs. 2019 Mom: Summer Edition," produced by Tiffany Jenkins, who runs the blog Juggling the Jenkins, and Meredith Masony, who writes on That's Inappropriate. Seems like can't get enough of the amusing juxtaposition between Boomers' grumpy, laissez-faire parenting and Millennials' endlessly appeasing, hands-on style.
Taylor Calmus
In "Millennial Dads vs. Baby Boomer Dads," Calmus plays a Millennial dad (probably not unlike himself) who says no to McDonald's (gotta avoid GMOs!), imaginatively turns a basic cardboard box into a spaceship, and politely requests that a baseball coach put his son in to pitch, among other "active" parenting endeavors. Meanwhile, Montplaisir portrays a Boomer dad who kicks the kids out of the family room when he wants to watch his TV shows, gets flustered and gives up while attempting a sex ed talk with his son, and tells his bored kids to "go play with a box over there".
The video has racked up 18K comments on Facebook, many of which are from Millennial parents who are fans of Boomer-style parenting. One commenter wrote, "I guess somehow I'm a Boomer now?? I'm exactly that dad. Right down to the Menards hat."
Calmus says he and Montplaisir made the video, because they had seen chatter about generational differences starting online. "As a millennial dad myself, I'm very aware of how parenting has changed—in some good ways and some not so good ways," Calmus notes. "We wanted to created a video that drew attention to that and poked fun at everyone."
He hopes that the clip encourages self-reflection among parents of all generations. "I hope the video challenges parents to examine how they parent," Calmus says. "But ultimately, I just hope it makes people laugh! We can always use more laughter!"
