Streamers Who Clapped Back At Their Interviewers

Over the last decade or so, streamers have managed to carve out a growing niche in modern entertainment. In fact, some of the biggest streamers have become household names, with some even branching out into Hollywood careers. Due to this level of popularity, fans are always looking for a chance to get inside the heads of these streamers, learning a little bit more about the way they think, how they see the world, and what their life is like when the cameras aren't rolling. Luckily for these kinds of fans, the growing popularity of livestreaming has led to many interviews that attempt to learn more about these modern celebrities.

While many streamers are still relatively new to the interview scene, the past few years have already yielded some memorable moments, including scathing jokes, insightful comments, and clever clapbacks. For anyone who enjoys watching their favorite internet personalities dish out witty retorts and sassy replies, here are some great examples of streamers who clapped back at their interviewers.

Fans have gotten to know and love Markiplier since the early days of YouTube, thanks in particular to his kindhearted personality and his high-quality bar for content. Of course, many fans are curious to learn more about how he rose to stardom, what his experience was like before the fame, and other interesting facts about his life. However, in a video by WIRED, "Markiplier Answers the Web's Most Searched Questions," the streamer was given some rather disappointing questions.

In this video, Markiplier was tasked with answering questions based on Google's autocomplete function. Early on, Markiplier was presented with a seemingly simple question: "What is Markiplier's catchphrase?" Markiplier immediately side-eyed this question, then gave a perfectly sassy and in-character response: "I don't know, I'm not a Pokémon, I don't have a catchphrase." He then continued by joking that a certain expletive could be his catchphrase, since he uses it so frequently. Although there are many great moments throughout the interview, fans have latched onto this response due to its sheer hilarity. One fan in the comments even suggests that this answer may in fact be one of "Markiplier's best lines," as well as a perfect response to his invisible interviewer.

As livestreaming has grown in popularity, the industry has created its own versions of celebrity events to gear towards streamers. While more mainstream performers look forward to things like the Oscars and the Emmys as their premiere award shows, streamers have launched their own celebration in the aptly-titled Streamer Awards. This award show, much like the previously mentioned events, also features a pre-show red carpet, complete with interviews with the attendees. During one of these red carpet chats at the 2023 Streamer Awards, popular streamers Hasan Piker and Ludwig Ahgren conducted a friendly interview with fellow content creator Pokimane. Following a bit of playful banter about Poki's wardrobe and accessories, Ludwig made a crack about how heavy Pokimane's purse was. In response, Pokimane remarked, "I mean, you think I don't f***ing lift?"

While some fans have viewed the interview as a bit forced and awkward on the whole, most are enjoyed seeing these beloved streamers joke around in such a casual fashion. For many fans, this kind of unscripted and witty banter is what makes watching streamers such a unique experience, particularly when compared to similar interactions in mainstream celebrity culture. In the end, while the clip is inarguably a bit awkward, hearing Pokimane clap back with a goofy reference is something sticks out in the minds of fans (in a good way).

Some streamer clapbacks can border on nasty, especially during high-stakes interviews. This was the case with a Fox News appearance for Hasan "HasanAbi" Piker, who frequently gets into political debates on his own channel. Due to his massive following, Piker was given the opportunity to make an appearance on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," where he talked about the complexities of the Israel-Palestine conflict in a roundtable interview/discussion. Tensions grew especially high during the debate, with Piker firing off some particularly caustic responses. For example, when accused of being patronizing, Hasan clarified, "I am being patronizing; I don't know who the f*** you are!" In another instance, when he felt one of the other panelists was dodging his point, he shouted, "Do you not understand the English language?"

As seen in comments on YouTube, many of Hasan's fans were excited to see the streamer finally get the chance to live their dream and "yell at the people on TV to their face." However, some felt like he'd stepped a bit over the line with his attitude, with one fan commenting, "I was not ready for him to clap back THAT hard, I almost feel mad embarrassed." Although his comments were a bit more intense than some fans (or his fellow TV panelists) might have preferred, many were pleased to see Hasan stand up for himself in such a high-intensity situation.

A proper clapback doesn't just have to be a clever bit of banter or a biting quip. Some streamers prefer to let their moves do the talking when faced with a difficult or annoying question. IShowSpeed proved this point during an interview with Complex, during which the interviewer brought up Speed's past achievements in athletics. While the streamer's history as a basketball player is touched on in the clip, it's kind of obvious that the interviewer had some doubts about Speed's skills. Being more a man of actions than words, Speed passed on the clever comments of his peers and, without any hesitation, responded with a backflip. The interviewer seemed to be instantly convinced by this physical feat, even as Speed joked, "I don't even know why I did that."

As far as streamer clapbacks are concerned, Speed's backflip is simultaneously bizarre and completely in line with his streaming persona. Many fans cite his first words after doing the flip as the moment that ties this whole weird exchange perfectly together. One of the things about IShowSpeed that many people find endearing is his tendency to act first, which has landed the streamer in both hilarious and upsetting situations over the years. Overall, while a backflip may not be the most clever response, it's apparently exactly what Speed's fans (and some interviewers) are looking for.

Although we had the chance to see the friendlier side of Pokimane a little earlier, the streamer has also been known to throw some real shade at times. Back in 2019, Pokimane fell into a bit of controversy after a content creator called Fainted posted a video called "The Dark Side of Pokimane," in which he criticized her for threatening to file copyright strikes against YouTube videos about her. She defended her right to strike these videos on the grounds that they reproduced her content without being transformative. Many onlookers weren't satisfied with her response, so she agreed to an interview with Fainted and Bowblax, a content creator who'd previously received a copystrike from Pokimane's team.

In this video, many fans have noticed that Pokimane's responses to the scandal had a bit more bite to them than usual. For example, when asked if she'd contacted Bowblax as a formality before striking his video, she shut down her interviewer by responding, "Contact him for what?" At another point, when Bowblax mentioned being unsure about monetizing posts on X (then Twitter), she bluntly answered, "You can," cutting him off and almost completely ending that line of questioning.  Pokimane also consistently pointed out the differences between a claim and a copyright strike, jumping in with a correction each time these terms were used improperly. 

In the end, her obvious frustation surprised even some of her hardcore fans, while others simply viewed Pokimane as a strong-willed person sticking to her guns. The following year, Pokimane posted a lengthy apology video, during which she reiterated her stance on transformative content and insisted that she'd never file a copyright claim in the future without a good reason.