Anarchism Behind the Mask

On 5 November 1605, the most famous failed coup in British history, now widely regarded by historians as an act of terrorism, was thwarted – the Gunpowder Plot. The conspirators intended to blow up the Parliament building and assassinate King James I during his throne speech. The plot was uncovered, and all participants were arrested and executed. Among the conspirators was English nobleman Guy Fawkes, who was to be the direct perpetrator of the attack.

Four centuries later, on 17 March 2006, the Wachowski sisters released V for Vendetta, a film adaptation of the dystopian graphic novel by Alan Moore and David Lloyd, reintroducing the image of Guy Fawkes into the contemporary social and political discourse.

The focus is on the enigmatic character V, portrayed by Hugo Weaving, wearing the iconic Guy Fawkes mask. While the motivations of this character and the ideas of Moore and the Wachowskis proved complex for the average viewer to grasp (the film was commercially successful, though not comparable in earnings to The Matrix trilogy), the image of this revolutionary anarchist opposing a neo-fascist state quickly caught on, becoming much more than a quirky costume for cosplay events.

Thanks to the film, the Guy Fawkes mask soon became one of the most recognised internet memes symbolising anonymity and protest, appearing on hacker forums and image boards before moving into the offline, “analogue” world. Within a year of the film’s release, the V mask, also known as the Anonymous mask, gained enormous popularity – according to The New York Times, Rubies Costume Company sold over 100,000 Guy Fawkes masks in one year, outselling Batman and Harry Potter masks, surpassed only by Darth Vader’s helmet, which eventually also lost its leading position. During the 2011 protests in New York (the Occupy Wall Street movement), the V mask became the most popular item on Amazon, with annual sales reaching several hundred thousand units, significantly boosting Warner Bros’ revenue, as the company holds the rights to the mask's design.

The impact of this film and its influence on society has been widely discussed in the press and online. While the Wachowskis’ earlier films, particularly The Matrix, also left a mark on the real world, inspiring a fashion trend for black latex, leather coats, and Neo-style sunglasses, the mask from V for Vendetta influenced more than just street fashion – it became a symbol of radical protest. David Lloyd, creator of the mask’s design, spoke positively about its popularity. He noted that the Guy Fawkes mask initially symbolised opposition to the establishment, much like the well-known image of Che Guevara. Lloyd personally attended the Occupy Wall Street protests to witness how images from his comic had manifested in real life:

"The Guy Fawkes mask has become a common brand, a convenient banner to use in protest against tyranny, and I am pleased that people are using it. I feel that the Anonymous group needed a universal symbol behind which they could hide while expressing individuality.”

Online, the Guy Fawkes mask became strongly associated with the hacker community known as Anonymous, who, after each of their actions or attacks, would leave an image of the mask on websites along with the message, "We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us." In the physical world, too, aside from the Occupy Wall Street protests, demonstrators frequently appeared wearing Guy Fawkes masks.

Photo: Ocuppy Wall-street, Source: GettyImages

Guy Fawkes first “protested” on 11 July 2008 in Boston during demonstrations against the Church of Scientology. In 2009, there were protests in the UK regarding a parliamentary expenses scandal. This was followed by the Occupy Wall Street protests, where thousands wore the British conspirator's mask.

In 2012, Guy Fawkes continued his global journey, reaching India, Hong Kong, and Madrid, where he took part in demonstrations against internet censorship, Chinese communist rule, and political corruption in the Spanish government. That summer, the Guy Fawkes mask made its first mass appearance in Ukraine, during protests against a bill by the pro-Russian government of President Yanukovych that proposed to make Russian the country’s second official language. Protesters in 13 Ukrainian cities, from Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk in the west to Odesa and Dnipro in the southeast, held rallies in Guy Fawkes masks, picketing offices of the Party of Regions and boycotting the Kremlin-supported bill.

Since then, Guy Fawkes has become a common presence at public protests, and given the continued political tensions worldwide, we can expect to see the British anarchist’s mask on the streets of European, Asian, and American cities for years to come.