Jacob Elordi: the posh Madrid look that divides opinion

Jacob Elordi, the Australian actor many see as a posh Madrid 'cayetano'

Does Jacob Elordi look like a posh Madrid native? Since his image went viral, part of the internet insists that the 'Euphoria' actor fits the stereotype of the wealthy 'cayetano' from Spain's capital. The theory rests on his bone structure, his near two-metre height and an expression that, according to some, resembles that of a drawing-room psychopath.

The facts about his Basque roots

Elordi's phenotype has a genealogical explanation. The actor's paternal grandparents were Basque and his father was born in the Basque Country. The family fled to Australia during the Civil War. This background has led to speculation that he could apply for Spanish citizenship under the Democratic Memory Law (a Spanish law granting nationality to descendants of exiles) and, who knows, vote for Vox in the next general election. Nobody misses the irony.

The comparison with Madrid's 'cayetano'

The sharpest comments compare his face with that of the classic posh kid from Madrid's Salamanca district: angular antiestéticatures, a distant gaze and a certain air of superiority that some read as psychopathy. Some joke that he could star in a 'remake' of American Psycho set in Madrid. The discussion quickly drifts towards genetics and Iberian phenotypes, although the real fact is that Elordi stands 1.96 metres tall —well above the Spanish average— and his mother is Anglo.

Closing: In the end, the debate over whether Jacob Elordi is or isn't a 'cayetano' reveals more about national stereotypes than about the actor. While some see him as the clone of a Madrid high-society heir, others point out that his Basque roots and international career place him light years away from any nightclub on Serrano street. The controversy, as almost always, says more about the observer than the observed.