Creepy backstory behind 'Rumpelstiltskin tiptoe' man that's taking over the internet

A clip of a Rumpelstiltskin-type character has gone viral on social media as people put it into new contexts, but it actually has a creepy backstory.

The clip features a young woman in what looks like a stable surrounded by hay, with a gnome-like character then approaching her as she screams out.

The gnome then does a dance around her, before turning all the hay in the room into gold coins, making the woman happy.

She then kisses the gnome character, who transforms into a handsome prince.

It's seemingly based on the Brothers Grimm fairytale Rumpelstiltskin, where the title character spins the hay in the stable into gold to save the life of the woman, whose father has boasted that she can spin hay into gold.

She must then guess Rumpelstiltskin's name to get out of having to give him her first child as payment for his services, which she does to his fury.

Some people had speculated that the clip was from the movie Rumpelstiltskin which was released back in 1987, but this is not the case.

One person took to social media, saying: "I am literally seeing it EVERYWHERE, and every single time, it sends a chill down my spine.

"I have no idea what it is about this creepy little thing, but something about it is deeply unsettling."

The clip is actually AI-generated, with the AI video generator scraping its database for the tropes and the looks of fantasy films from around the 1980s, as well as what even appears to be some sort of 'handsome prince' trope towards the end.

It has even generated the look of the pre-CGI practical effects in these sorts of films in the way that the character's feet move.

An Instagram account called stroinaya appears to be where the video was first shared, and has other AI-generated clips which appear to reference fairytales such as The Frog Prince and Rapunzel.

In the description of the original video shared on 27 August, the creator wrote: "To create a fantasy world, shoot a short film without a camera and actors, make music, a cartoon or an entire project — today you don't need a big team and a huge budget."

According to the caption, the idea is to promote their course, which helps people turn AI prompts into 'cinema'.

The Rumpelstiltskin character joins other viral, larger-than-life AI creations such as Jean Philanthrope and Benjamin Stachio.

It's far from the first time that AI has been used in this way, with the 'dark fantasy' trope previously going viral with AI-generated clips mimicking the results of the immense talent and hard work that went into the practical effects in these films.

Movies such as The Never-ending Story, Labyrinth, or The Dark Crystal all have a very distinctive look - the result of months and even years of talented artists working hard to produce spellbinding puppets, make-up, prosthetics, and sets.

In the meme, the footage is played, with the music being 'TiP TOE WiNG iN MY JAWWDINZ' by Riff Raff as the AI-generated gnome dances.

The AI-generated character has also been isolated out from the rest of the clip and placed onto a green screen background, allowing people to put it onto whatever other backdrop they want.

People have put it into different contexts, with meme.com explaining that it conveys 'smug, playful mischief'.