The seagulls only shout one word: "Mine!" Because of how often this is repeated, people naturally began to repeatedly say "mine!" in reference to the film, whether it be for no particular reason or a specific purpose (i.e. when someone wants to get something quickly).
The Internet delights in making the film sound like a horror film: "An optimistic young family is brutally attacked by a serial killer. The mother is murdered and eaten, along with all her children, the father is traumatized, and their only remaining son is physically disabled. Years later, that son is kidnapped and his father must track him down with the help of a mentally disabled woman."
Even the Nightmare Fuel page describes the film as the closest thing Pixar has made to a horror film.
A recurring joke involves pointing out that Marlin would have a very different relationship with his son if the film followed the real biology of clownfish, as they are sequential hermaphrodites and reproduce with their family members in time of emergency.
After the 3D re-release, a new meme was sprouted: Marlin appearing randomly screaming "HAVE YOU SEEN MY SON??" in various pictures and other movies.
"Fish are friends—not food!" is especially popular among animal rights activists, for obvious reasons.
During that scene when a purple fish falls off a sponge bed and cries, it's become popular to replace the wailing sound with another scream sound.
"FISH TITTIES!" became a popular meme due to a Gag Dub being posted on vine.
Peach's Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap! reaction to the tank getting cleaned in the night is often used with "the tank is clean!" replaced with some event the person making the meme has been looking forward to or dreading depending on the circumstances.
It’s not uncommon to see Gill, Willem Dafoe’s character, being referred to as "the hot fish from Finding Nemo".
Good luck trying to visit any aquarium that houses clownfish and regal tang and not have some kids in the crowd calling them Nemo and Dory respectively. Bonus points if the two species are housed in the same tank.
“Now what?” ExplanationOriginates from the post-credits scene, where the Tank Gang finally escape - but can't do anything since they're stuck in plastic bags. It's used as a reaction image, typically for moments involving an unexpected turn of events or a Didn't Think This Through reaction. The Spanish version, "¿Y ahora qué?", is also popular on Spanish-speaking sides of the web.
At one point, it was popular to post pictures with the anglerfish attacking Marlin and Dory and add the text: "That's what feminism is".ExplanationThe males of the species are much smaller and lack the bioluminescent lure characteristic of the species.
