Smalltown Boy Dance AI: Two Photos, the Scream-and-Swap Dance
One leans into the lens and screams with both hands on their head, the other dances behind, then they swap places and dance together — 21 seconds on Bronski Beat’s "Smalltown Boy", the scene from Netflix’s Monster that TikTok turned into the Smalltown Boy dance. Nobody in these videos actually filmed it: it is two photos in, a clip out. Pick one of the 13 takes below, upload two photos, and AI puts you and your best friend, your partner, your kid or your cat in it, scream and all.
- 13 takes to remix
- Two photos, one video
- Keeps the Smalltown Boy sound
- No watermark
Sexually explicit (NSFW) content is strictly prohibited.
Pick a sample
Rendering takes about 7 min. Finished clips land in History.
Smalltown Boy Dance Videos to Remix
The takes the trend is built on, the most-liked first: two bikers in full gear, two cats in a living room, the solo dance from 1 October that is the most-liked post on the sound, Spider-Man and Mary Jane, Adam West’s Batman and the Joker, a Spanish TV set, Fluffy and Moomoo, two dachshunds, two cat-people, Wednesday and Enid, and a couple at the wall. Pick the one whose two faces, room and clothes fit the photos you have, and it becomes the reference for your Smalltown Boy dance video.
Two bikers, helmets still on
@stxvxntran on TikTokTwo cats screaming in a living room
@zefosik on TikTokThe dance itself, danced for real
@sinist3r.doll on TikTokSpider-Man and Mary Jane
@capcut.ai.templat5 on TikTokBatman and the Joker, 1966
@chazhamrick87 on TikTokA Spanish TV set, presenters and all
@muchogusto.mega on TikTokFluffy and Moomoo
@fluffyfishlover on TikTokTwo dachshunds at the fence
@king_odiee on TikTokTwo cat-people in dresses
@unya4ka on TikTokWednesday and Enid
@artemiscc_capcut on TikTokA couple against the wall
@otakonvanrock on TikTokTwo cats on a wooden fence
View on TikTokTwo dogs in a yard
View on TikTokWhat Is the Smalltown Boy Dance?
The Smalltown Boy dance is a 21-second TikTok clip of two characters taking turns leaning into the camera and screaming, then swapping places and dancing side by side to Bronski Beat’s "Smalltown Boy". Almost nobody in the videos filmed themselves: two photos go in, an AI model or a CapCut template builds the clip, and both faces come out dancing.
It starts at Netflix. Episode 6 of Ryan Murphy’s Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story cuts between Lizzie Borden, played by Ella Beatty, and Bridget dancing in the 1890s and Aileen Wuornos, played by Sarah Paulson, dancing with Shelby at the Borden bed and breakfast a century later, all on one 1984 synth-pop single. Netflix posted the scene on X on 22 September 2026; it drew a backlash over turning real killers into entertainment, and the song went back up the streaming charts a week later. The close-up, hands-on-head grimace that the trend copies is the show’s own melodrama, played for laughs.
"Smalltown Boy" itself is Bronski Beat’s debut single, released in 1984: Jimmy Somerville’s falsetto over a drum machine, the story of a young gay man leaving a town that would not have him, and a top-three hit in the UK. It is the reason the dance works at all. The synth line and the drum fill carry the whole clip, so the timing survives being cut into 21 seconds, and the song survives whoever is swapped in.
The version everyone is posting now is the two-photo one. In the first seconds one character screams into the lens with both hands on their head while the second dances loosely behind; then they swap, so the one who was dancing takes the close-up; then both come together for the loose 80s moves and reach their hands at the camera at the end. CapCut’s "SmallTown Boy" template (61,400 uses) does it in 15 seconds and 9:16, and the takes run from two bikers in full leathers and two cats in a living room to Adam West’s Batman and the Joker, Wednesday and Enid, and a pair of AI cat-people. That is the tell: nothing in the shot list belongs to the person dancing. This page is the swap for your own photos, whether that is you and your best friend, a couple, a kid or two pets.
How to Make a Smalltown Boy Dance Video with AI
- 1
Pick a take
Choose the reference on the right: two bikers, two cats, Batman and the Joker, Wednesday and Enid, a Spanish TV set, a couple. Your Smalltown Boy dance video keeps that take’s room, camera, moves and sound.
- 2
Upload two photos
One clear photo per character, head and shoulders or waist-up, facing the camera. The first photo takes the close-up scream, the second dances behind. If you only have one photo, only the front character changes and the other stays as it is in the take.
- 3
Generate and post
Your Smalltown Boy dance video comes out vertical 9:16 with the take’s own sound in it, so it lands on the same TikTok audio as the rest of the trend. Add the AI label when you post it.
Tips for a Better Smalltown Boy Dance Video
Two faces, same size in frame
The joke needs both faces readable in the close-ups, so pick photos where the two people are lit the same way and shot from about the same distance. A bright outdoor selfie next to a dark bedroom photo makes the swap look like two different videos.
Choose who screams first
The first close-up is the punchline and it belongs to whoever is funnier doing it. Put that person’s photo first. The second character only has to dance, so a good full-body photo of them helps the background half of the clip.
One photo is enough
If you only have one good photo, pick a take and swap just the front character: the other one stays as they are in the reference. People do this all the time with a celebrity or a favourite character as the partner.
Pets need a standing photo
For the cat and dog versions, a photo of the animal standing or sitting upright, whole body in frame, gets the model to put it on its hind legs. A head-only photo leaves it guessing at the paws, and paws are where pet renders fall apart.
Skip the watermarked takes
Every sample on this page is clean: no CapCut corner mark, no channel logo, no burned-in caption. If you pick a take on TikTok yourself, check the corners first, because a watermark at the top edge ends up in your video too.
Pricing
Each Smalltown Boy dance video is one use (700 credits), whether you pick 14 or 15 seconds. The price is on the button before you start, and nothing else is added.
A single use is $9.90; packs of 4 and 8 uses, or a monthly plan that posts trend videos to your accounts for you, cost less per video. A render that fails is refunded automatically.
Autopilot plans
Every month we turn the newest trends into meme videos and post them to your accounts. Each post is one of the plan’s videos, and any you make yourself come out of the same count. Cancel any time.
One-time video packs
Pay once and use them on any trend template, at any length. The credits never expire, and the other video tools can spend them too.
Use it responsibly
- Only upload photos of yourself, of people who said yes, or of your own pets.
- Do not use it to make someone look like they did something they did not.
- Label the result as AI when you post it; TikTok and Instagram both have an AI-generated tag.
- The dance comes from Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story. Do not present your clip as footage from the show, and do not imply Netflix, Ryan Murphy, Ella Beatty or Sarah Paulson made it or endorse it.
- If you swap in a real character or a celebrity, keep it a joke about dancing: nothing in this trend should make someone look like they did something they did not do.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Smalltown Boy dance?
A 21-second TikTok format: two characters take turns leaning into the camera and screaming with their hands on their heads, swap places, then dance side by side to Bronski Beat’s "Smalltown Boy". Most of the videos are made from two photos, with AI or a CapCut template, not filmed.
Where did the Smalltown Boy dance come from?
Netflix. Episode 6 of Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, Ryan Murphy’s series, cuts between Lizzie Borden and Bridget dancing in the 1890s and Aileen Wuornos and Shelby a century later, all to one song. Netflix posted the scene on 22 September 2026 and TikTok turned it into a trend in early October.
What is the Smalltown Boy song?
Bronski Beat’s "Smalltown Boy", the band’s debut single from 1984: Jimmy Somerville’s falsetto over a drum machine, about a young gay man leaving a town that would not have him. It reached the UK top three then, and went back up the streaming charts in October 2026 after the Netflix scene.
Is the Smalltown Boy dance AI?
The dance is from a TV scene; the videos on TikTok are mostly AI. Two photos go into a model or a CapCut template and come out as a 21-second clip with both faces screaming, swapping and dancing. That is why nobody in them can actually dance, and why the takes run from bikers to cats.
Why is it called the scream-and-swap dance?
Because that is the whole routine: one character screams into the lens while the other dances behind, then they swap, and finish dancing together. "Smalltown Boy dance" is the name you will find on TikTok; "scream-and-swap" is what the format does, and both mean the same clip.
Which photo goes first?
The one who should scream at the camera. In every take the front character leans in with both hands on their head in the first seconds, so that photo gets the punchline. The second photo is the one dancing behind, who then takes the close-up in the swap.
Can I do the Smalltown Boy dance with only one photo?
Yes. Pick a take, upload one photo and only the front character changes; the second one stays as they are in the reference. It is the usual way people put themselves next to a celebrity or a character from a show.
Can I do it with my cat, my dog or two pets?
Yes, and the pet versions are the funniest ones here: the two cats take, the two dachshunds and the pair of dogs are all built for it. Upload one photo per animal, standing or sitting upright with the whole body in frame, and both of them end up on their hind legs.
How many seconds is the video?
The takes run 15 to 21 seconds; your render is 15 seconds at most, because that is the longest reference the remix model takes. The sound is already in the clip, so nothing has to be trimmed or re-synced by hand afterwards.
Is the Smalltown Boy dance still trending?
Yes, and it is still early. The CapCut template has been used 61,400 times and is still adding roughly 3,400 a day, TikTok adds around a dozen new posts a day under the name, and Google searches for it went from nothing in September to about 200 a day in late October.
What is the difference between this and the Netflix scene?
The scene is four characters in two time periods on one dance floor, filmed with actors. The trend is two characters, one wall, 21 seconds, made from photos. The trend keeps the song, the close-up grimace and the loose 80s dancing, and drops everything else.
What is the Smalltown Boy Dance AI prompt?
The you and your best friend prompt is in the AI Prompts section below. It starts: "Image 1 and Image 2 are the two Friends." Paste the rest into any AI video tool that accepts your photos.
Who Is Screaming at the Lens?
Pick a take, add two photos, and post your Smalltown Boy dance while the sound is still everywhere.
Make my Smalltown Boy dance videoMore Trends to Remix
Smalltown Boy Dance AI Prompts
The remix prompt that swaps both characters inside a take is above the gallery; these are four text prompts for the open generator at the top of the page. Each one describes the scream-and-swap beat by beat and keeps the two characters in their animal or human shape, so they work in any image-to-video model that takes your photos as Image 1 and Image 2.
You and your best friend
Image 1 and Image 2 are the two Friends. A vertical phone video, one continuous take, the camera at chest height, the two of them against the wall of a yard or a plain room, ordinary daylight, crisp and real. No captions, no stickers, no logos. The two of them stand against a garden wall and perform the Smalltown Boy dance from TikTok: the first one leans right into the lens, hands on the head, mouth open in a fake scream, while the second one dances loosely in the background; then they swap, so the second one takes the close-up scream and the first dances behind; then both come to the middle, shoulder to shoulder, and do the loose 80s moves, elbows out, hips going, one arm up, and at the end both reach their hands at the camera, the second one half a step behind and slightly out of focus until it is their turn. Keep each friend’s face, hair, skin tone, build and outfit exactly as in their image. Audio: a 1980s synth-pop track with a drum-machine beat and a high falsetto vocal, no dialogue.
Other versions: You and your partner · Your cat and your dog · Two of your friends