- 6 weeks ago
Life imitates art in the most bizarre ways! Join us as we explore the outrageous "Family Guy" storylines that somehow manifested in reality. From cannabis legalization to psychic phenomena, these animated antics predicted real events with uncanny accuracy. Which prophetic Peter Griffin plot surprised you most?
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00:00What are you talking about?
00:01Thanks to a technicality, we have the right to secede from the US.
00:05Welcome to WatchMojo. And today, we're counting down our picks for the wildest shenanigans
00:11featured on Family Guy that ended up occurring later on in the real world. We'll be excluding
00:16any one-off jokes that happened to come true and only focusing on actual plot lines.
00:23My god, look at you.
00:24Oh, look at my complexion, Brian! I am hot!
00:2710. The Patriots win again
00:32What would you do to help your favorite team turn their record around?
00:36Peter and the gang answered that in Three Acts of God.
00:39Now what do you say? Let's go find God.
00:42Alright, I'm in.
00:43Me too.
00:43Let's do this!
00:44They traveled the globe and the heavens themselves to find the deity, asking him to stop meddling
00:50with the New England Patriots. He relented, but only if they could make Bill Belichick smile.
00:57They succeeded and the curse was lifted, allowing them to start winning again.
01:02Oh, you guys pulled it off.
01:04Well, a deal's a deal. I'll leave the Patriots alone.
01:07The episode aired shortly after the team lost the 2013 AFC Championship. The following fall,
01:13the tides turned. They crushed the regular season and went on to win it all in Super Bowl 49.
01:20After the wackiest lead-up to a Super Bowl ever, the New England Patriots are the NFL champions.
01:29The guys' journey and challenge may have been fictional, but their efforts appear to have
01:33given way to real-life results.
01:359. Brian's Best-Selling Self-Help Book
01:40Throughout the animated series, the Griffin family's dog has done everything to become a famous author.
01:46Clearly, I am not meant to be a writer. I have tried and I have tried and nothing has worked out.
01:50I put my heart out there and it keeps getting stomped on.
01:53One of his more successful ventures was Wish It, Want It, Do It, a book that claimed to help the reader get
02:01anything they wanted. Despite the intentionally low-effort content, it became an instant hit.
02:07It first aired in 2010 and since then, media, under the self-approvement umbrella, has been extremely profitable.
02:15We're here with Brian Griffin, local author of the new bestseller, Wish It, Want It, Do It.
02:20Am I pronouncing that correctly? Uh, yeah.
02:22Thanks to social media, everything from books to podcasts has seen immense growth,
02:28with sales of the former doubling between 2022 and 2023 alone. Many mirror the elements Brian was
02:35originally mocking, like their punchy titles and broad promises. However, we can only hope that,
02:42unlike his, they offer genuine advice to those buying them.
02:47Basically makes three points and two of them the same point.
02:53Well, you know, I mean, it does seem to be helping a lot of people, Bill.
02:56I mean… Well, help is a strong word.
02:588. Stewie's Excessive Tanning and Skin Cancer Scare
03:04Wanting a sun-kissed look can lead to disastrous consequences. Stewie learned that in The Tan
03:10Aquatic with Steve Zissou, where an accidental tan resulted in a full-on obsession. He maintained it
03:19however possible, including getting a tanning bed for his room. After being inside it for hours,
03:25he was left with a painful burn and a non-cancerous mole. In the years since the episode premiered,
03:31tanning has become even more prevalent amongst younger demographics, thanks to the methods pushed
03:36on social media. The mole looks benign, but we won't know for sure whether it's cancerous until the tests
03:41come back in a few days. A few days? I could be dead by then! This has led to an abundance of both
03:47sunburns and melanoma amongst Gen Z, with the latter becoming one of the deadliest diseases
03:53in the age group. Hopefully, they learn from Stewie and realize how much danger they're putting
03:59themselves in. It really is an epidemic and people are living a lot more active lifestyles now,
04:05people are outdoors, a lot more people moving to the south, so a lot more exposure and there's a
04:11lot of hesitation now for people with sun protection. Number 7. Peter Becomes a Famous Psychic
04:17In this intense episode, Stewie and Chris go missing for days in the woods. Lois seeks help from beyond as
04:24a final desperate measure. The boys were found afterward, leading to her vehemently believing
04:39in psychics and Brian doing everything he could to snap her out of it. After having Peter pretend to
04:45be one, Lois admitted she was wrong, but by that point, her husband was convinced he actually had
04:52powers. He immediately capitalized on his newfound ability, posting readings in his home and even
05:02performing them in front of live audiences before finally being exposed. A year after it aired,
05:08Long Island Medium premiered, bringing both Teresa Caputo and other supposed clairvoyance into the
05:15spotlight, where many still remain today. Number 6. Stewie's Steroid Use
05:37Unrealistic standards can affect everyone, even cartoon babies. After Stewie is beaten up by Susan Swanson,
05:44Peter takes him to the gym and gives him performance-enhancing substances to get faster results.
05:50Suddenly I'm full of energy! Alright fat man, let's do this! As a result, he had a hilariously
05:56exaggerated physique and personality shift, both of which disappeared after they wore off. You'd
06:02think a story like that would be too ridiculous for real life. And now, here's something we hope you'll
06:08really like. Unfortunately, interest in and the usage of steroids have both increased since then.
06:15Social media has made them more prevalent, with one report finding that videos featuring them were
06:20viewed millions of times by younger demographics. The desire to look more muscular has led to teens
06:26taking both legal and illegal substances, with around 6% admitting to the latter. Most are not aware so
06:34many kids are taking supplements to try and change their own bodies. Number 5. Abortion Discourse
06:41in Quahog Family Guy isn't the first to have tackled the topic, but elements from its plot were eerily
06:48reflected later on. Partial terms of endearment showed Lois becoming a surrogate for her friends,
06:54only for them to tragically pass. I still just, I can't believe they're gone. They had their whole lives
07:01ahead of them. She then had to decide whether to terminate the pregnancy or not, which was
07:06exacerbated by Peter getting wrapped up in the pro-life movement. The showrunners couldn't have
07:11known just how accurate their portrayal of the debate would become. I'm sorry if you disagree with
07:17me, but according to the law, it is still my right to choose what I do with my body. Well,
07:22the law is wrong, Lois. Anti-abortion protests like the one in the episode leading to family planning
07:27centers being attacked and heartbeat bills being passed. Roe v. Wade being overturned in 2022
07:35made the issue even more polarizing, and to this day, the debate still rages on.
07:40In a sweeping ruling that overturned a half a century of precedents, five justices ended the
07:45right of American women to choose abortion under the constitution. Number 4. Peter sues Dr.
07:51Hartman after his prostate exam. What was treated as an outlandish joke in the series ended up being a
07:58disturbing reality. After going in for a flu shot, Peter gets a checkup from Dr. Hartman.
08:04Okay, heart sounds good. All right, Mr. Griffin, I'm just going to need you to drop your pants and
08:08we'll check your prostate. This includes a prostate exam, an important if not slightly invasive test
08:14that helps screen for cancer or other issues. He ended up being so traumatized that he took the
08:21practitioner to court, causing him to temporarily lose his license. Your medical license is hereby
08:27revoked. That's outrageous. Two years after it aired, a New York man sued a hospital after they held
08:33him down and drugged him to perform a rectal exam for a non-related injury. A 2024 study found that
08:40millions have been subjected to these unwanted tests, leading to some areas implementing laws to
08:46prevent them from happening. Number 3. The Formation of Peetoria
08:54After trying to get a permit to build a pool in his backyard, Peter learns something shocking,
09:00that his house technically isn't a part of the United States. He then forms his own country,
09:14Peetoria, and uses his world leader status as justification for breaking American laws.
09:20While Micronations existed long before Family Guy, Juan in particular bears a resemblance to the
09:27Griffins. In 2003, an Australian family formed their own country, Snake Hill, after not being able to
09:37pay their taxes. It's eerily similar to the fictional situation, especially given the fact that it stemmed
09:44from Peter being audited. The real-life Micronation even received support from other world leaders
09:49the way Peetoria did, but in the form of holiday cards rather than pool parties.
09:55I'm going to invite a few of these fellas over for a party.
10:01See, Lois, I told you we had allies.
10:03Number 2. The Public's Reaction to O.J. Simpson
10:08When Peter invited the defamed football star to his home in the 2009 episode,
10:12The Juice is Loose, his friends and family were horrified.
10:16O.J., this is my family. Family, O.J.
10:19It's nice to meet you all.
10:20They saw him as an accused murderer who'd been let off, and treated him accordingly.
10:25Simpson urged them to rethink their stance, only to then go on a killing spree.
10:32The reception his fictionalized self received was similar to the response he got after being
10:36granted parole in 2017, just nine years into his decades-long sentence following his 2007
10:44robbery case. Many were shocked and expressed that he hadn't done his time or that he'd be back
10:49behind bars soon. It showed that the distrust the public had for him was deeply ingrained,
10:55both in the animated world and the real one.
10:58I think we owe you an apology, O.J.
11:01Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified
11:06about our latest videos. You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them.
11:11If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
11:151. Weed is legalized in Kohong
11:21When this first aired, no one could have guessed it would someday be reality.
11:26I can't believe they threw me in jail for a quarter ounce of pot.
11:30In 2009, cannabis wasn't just illegal in the United States, it was still classed as a Schedule
11:371 drug and prosecuted as such. Episode 420 followed Brian as he advocated for legalization in Kohog.
11:45His efforts were successful, and for a brief time, adults were able to use it however they pleased.
11:51See, Lois, tell me things in Kohog aren't better now.
11:54Just a few years later, the United States followed suit. Washington and Colorado successfully legalized
12:00it recreationally and medically in 2012. Since then, several states and territories have done the same.
12:07Even those that don't allow citizens to smoke for fun still allow it for medical usage,
12:13a far cry from how it was treated in the past.
12:16The bill was signed into law today, like you said, by Governor Andrew Cuomo,
12:20and people here in the North Country are excited.
12:23Have any of your favorite Family Guy stories occurred in real life? Let us know in the comments below.
12:29I'm really into him now. You better be okay with it!
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