| “ | The Cheese Touch. Nobody knows when or how, but one day that cheese mysteriously appeared on the blacktop. Nobody knew who it belonged to. Nobody touched it. Nobody threw it away. And so there it sat, growing more foul and powerful by the day. | ” |
| — Chirag Gupta in the film adaptation of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. | ||
The Cheese Touch is a game mainly played at Westmore Middle School during Greg Heffley's first school year. It is the overarching antagonist of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and its movie adaptation and serves as one of the the major antagonists in the online book despite it not being an actual character.
If somebody has the Cheese Touch, they will be a social outcast until they pass it onto someone else by touching them.
Contents
- 1 History
- 1.1 Diary of a Wimpy Kid
- 1.2 Rodrick Rules
- 1.3 Double Down
- 1.4 Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010 film)
- 1.5 Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (2011 film)
- 1.6 Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021 film)
- 1.7 Online
- 2 Known Victims
- 3 Trivia
- 4 Appearances
- 5 Gallery
- 5.1 Online
- 5.2 Diary of a Wimpy Kid
- 5.3 Rodrick Rules
- 6 References
History[]
Diary of a Wimpy Kid[]
The Cheese Touch was first mentioned at the start of the book where it is revealed that the Cheese Touch originated from a piece of moldy Swiss cheese that lay on the basketball court for months. The first person to have the cheese touch was Darren Walsh, who touched it with his finger. Greg Heffley says that Cheese Touch works like the cooties: you have it until you pass it on to someone else. Greg says that the only way to protect yourself from the Cheese Touch is by crossing your fingers, and Greg ended up taping his fingers together (he got a D in handwriting as a result, but felt that it was worth it).
Greg says that a kid named Abe Hall got the Cheese Touch in the last April before middle school, and nobody would go near him for the rest of the school year. Greg says that Abe took the Cheese Touch with him when he and his family moved out to California, and Greg expresses hope that no one starts up the Cheese Touch again.[1]
Later, a wrestling unit was taught to the school which leads Greg to open up the possibly of the resurgence of the Cheese Touch.[2]
Towards the end of the first book, Greg and Rowley Jefferson are confronted by a group of teenagers they ran into on Halloween night, who end up forcing Rowley to eat the Cheese--they were going to make Greg and Rowley split it, but Greg was able to get out of it by claiming he was allergic to dairy. After Rowley was forced to eat the Cheese, kids at school the next day noticed that it was gone and started coming up with theories as to what happened to it. Greg ultimately kept his mouth shut about what happened to him and Rowley, and eventually claimed to the other students that he ended up throwing it away, which freaked them out because by saying that, Greg technically has the Cheese Touch.
Rodrick Rules[]
When Greg starts his second year of middle school, he notices all the other students are going out of their way to avoid him. He's confused by this, but then realizes why this is: Greg had gotten the Cheese Touch during the last week of the previous school year but had completely forgotten about it over the summer. Greg's initially that he'll be stuck with the Cheese Touch for the entire school year, but he ends up passing it onto Jeremy Pindle, a boy in his homeroom who's also a new transfer student to their school. After this, everybody at Greg's middle school seems to forget about the Cheese Touch for the most part.[3]
Double Down[]
The first mention of the Cheese Touch since the second book, Greg claims that there's still a stain on the ground where the old slice of cheese used to be. While Greg's happy that the cheese (along with the Cheese Touch) is gone, he claims that some students actually kind of miss it and have even tried starting it back up -- thankfully, the teachers have done everything they can to stop that from happening. One student tried starting it back up again but used a slice of roast beef instead of cheese -- as a result, they tried calling it the "Roast Beef Touch." However, it didn't have the same ring to it as "Cheese Touch," so it ultimately never came to be (and the roast beef was removed from the blacktop).
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010 film)[]
In the Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie, according to Chirag Gupta, the Cheese Touch’s history is slightly changed. Instead of Abe Hall, the student it is passed into before it dissipates for most of the book, the film has a German exchange student named Dieter Muller take the Cheese Touch and move back home to Düsseldorf.
Eventually, Rowley is forced to eat the cheese by the teenagers. When confronted, Greg takes the fall for eating the cheese, picks it up and has a powerful speech about the state of the school in place of his much more underwhelming reaction in the book. Despite this, the end result is the same: everyone is in consensus that Greg has the Cheese Touch and they scatter, all because of Patty. Afterwards, Greg picks up the cheese again and throws it away, before he and Rowley walk home together as they both have the Cheese Touch.
Near the end of the movie, as everyone gets their yearbook, Patty avoids Greg as she didn't want to get the Cheese Touch. She then hugs Rowley and gives him his yearbook. Both Rowley and Greg smile as since Patty hugged Rowley, he secretly passed his Cheese Touch to her, though Greg still has his.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (2011 film)[]
In the film, Greg mentions to Rowley that he passed his Cheese Touch to Jeremy Pindle, as he's the new kid. Later, the stain where the cheese was is shown.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021 film)[]
Instead of Chirag telling Greg about the story of the cheese touch, Rodrick tells him.
Online[]
The start of the Cheese Touch was caused by Darnell Washington tripping over the cheese. [4]
Known Victims[]
This is a list of people who are known to have had the Cheese Touch at some point.
- Darren Walsh
- Darnell Washington (online version of Darren Walsh; getting tripped and accidentally touched the Cheese)
- Abe Hall (moved away with the Cheese Touch to California)
- Dieter Muller (movie version of Abe Hall; moved away with the Cheese Touch to Dusseldorf)
- Rowley Jefferson (forced to eat the Cheese in the first book, later saved by Greg)
- Greg Heffley (took the fall for Rowley Jefferson, who ate the Cheese)
- Patty Farrell (took the Cheese Touch by hugging Rowley Jefferson, without knowing)
- Jeremy Pindle (last known person with the Cheese Touch)
Trivia[]
- In the 2012 novel Wonder, the main character, Auggie, references the Cheese Touch when he notices "The Plague", a cooties-like game involving him.
- The type of cheese is Swiss, and it was said in the movie diary that they had to try out lots of different types for the movie.
- In the Diary of a Wimpy Kid movies, the cheese used for The Cheese Touch is made out of silicone as stated in The Wimpy Kid Movie Diary.
- It was also stated that the rotting effect was generated using CGI.
- In the movie version of Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules, as well as in Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Double Down, there is a dark stain from where the Cheese used to be.
- Despite this, students still avoid the stain, indicating that touching or stepping on the stain could still cause The Cheese Touch.
Appearances[]
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid (online)
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010 film)
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (2011 film)
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Double Down
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021 film)
Gallery[]
Online[]
Diary of a Wimpy Kid[]
Rodrick Rules[]
The Cheese in the movie
The Cheese itself
A real-life board game of the Cheese Touch
Greg staring at the cheese
Greg sees the spot where the Cheese used to be during the Balloon Brigade in Double Down
A teacher stopping a kid from putting cheese on the basketball court
Students staring at the cheese in the 2021 Disney+ film
References[]
As an expert in the fascinating and intricate world of fictional social phenomena, I'd like to delve into the intriguing concept of "The Cheese Touch" from the renowned "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" series. The Cheese Touch is a unique and compelling game played at Westmore Middle School, intricately woven into the fabric of Greg Heffley's first school year. The narrative unfolds as a mysterious piece of moldy Swiss cheese appears on the blacktop, giving rise to a peculiar and social-status-altering game.
The Cheese Touch operates as a contagious affliction, much like cooties, but with its own set of rules. If someone is unfortunate enough to contract the Cheese Touch, they become a social outcast until they manage to pass it on to another individual through physical contact. The concept is brilliantly simple yet powerfully effective in driving the storyline and character dynamics.
Now, let's break down the key concepts and elements related to The Cheese Touch as outlined in the provided article:
-
History:
- The Cheese Touch originated from a piece of moldy Swiss cheese left on the basketball court for months.
- The first person to contract the Cheese Touch was Darren Walsh, who touched it with his finger.
- The game operates like cooties, with the condition persisting until it is passed on to someone else.
-
Diary of a Wimpy Kid:
- Greg Heffley reveals the history of the Cheese Touch, emphasizing its impact on social dynamics at Westmore Middle School.
- Greg takes extreme measures, like taping his fingers together, to avoid contracting the Cheese Touch.
-
Rodrick Rules:
- In Greg's second year of middle school, he realizes he has the Cheese Touch but manages to pass it on to Jeremy Pindle.
- The concept is temporarily forgotten by students after the transfer of the Cheese Touch.
-
Double Down:
- The stain of the old cheese is mentioned, indicating the lasting impact of the Cheese Touch.
- Some students express nostalgia for the game, but attempts to restart it with roast beef fail.
-
Film Adaptations:
- In the movie adaptation, the Cheese Touch's history is slightly altered, involving a German exchange student named Dieter Muller.
- Greg takes the fall for eating the cheese in the movie, leading to a powerful speech and the same consequence of being labeled with the Cheese Touch.
-
Online Version:
- The online version introduces Darnell Washington, who tripped over the cheese, causing the start of the Cheese Touch.
-
Known Victims:
- A list of individuals known to have had the Cheese Touch, including Darren Walsh, Abe Hall, Dieter Muller, Rowley Jefferson, Greg Heffley, Patty Farrell, and Jeremy Pindle.
-
Trivia:
- A reference to the Cheese Touch is made in the novel "Wonder."
- The type of cheese is Swiss, and various types were considered for the movie adaptation.
- The cheese used in the movies is made of silicone, and the rotting effect is generated using CGI.
-
Appearances and Gallery:
- The Cheese Touch is featured in various forms in the book, movies, and online version, with a visual representation in the gallery.
-
References:
- Citations from the original source, including page references from the books.
In conclusion, The Cheese Touch is a brilliantly crafted fictional element that adds humor, tension, and a unique social dynamic to the world of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid." Its evolution throughout the series and its various adaptations showcase the creativity and wit of the author, engaging readers and viewers alike in the quirky world of middle school antics.
