They were supposed to be the headline act, but by the end of the Super Bowl 50 halftime show, Chris Martin and Coldplay were the laughing stock of the internet.
The world's biggest and most-maligned band never stood a chance alongside "supporting acts" Beyonce and Bruno Mars.
It was Beyonce's show, the internet decided, and boy, were they scathing.
With his multicoloured elastic bracelets, Martin looked like an awkward late addition to Beyonce's fiery routine and Mars' funky vinyl-clad troupe.
"Chris Martin kind of looks like the guy who sings with the band at his own wedding," Modern Family's executive producer Danny Zuker quipped.
"The Make-a-Wish Foundation outdid themselves with Chris Martin. He'll never forget that," tweeted another person.
wish chris martin would have consciously uncoupled from that— steve rousseau (@steverousseau) February 8, 2016
Coldplay performing their hit song "When Does Beyoncé Get Here?"— John Moe (@johnmoe) February 8, 2016
Martin's awkward crouching next to a pint-sized Mars was also noted by the hundreds of millions of viewers watching the NFL championship game.
We've seen this all before, of course.
During Katy Perry's set at last year's Super Bowl, one of her shark backup dancers put in such a poor performance he became known simply as "left shark".
As Coldplay performed their biggest hits, including Yellow and the uplifting Viva La Vida, a bizarre montage of past halftime performances by the likes of Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston flashed on screen.
The grand finale? A giant message in the stands which reminded us to "Believe In Love".
The set had barely finished before dozens of memes hit the internet, calling Martin "this year's left shark".
The Super Bowl 50 was always going to be Beyonce's show. Her performance during the game in 2013 was hailed as one of the best Super Bowl halftime shows of all time.
Destiny's Child band members Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams who reunited with Beyonce for the show were similarly upstaged by the 34-year-old.
"'Poor Chris' is the new 'Poor Michelle'," someone joked in reference to incident.
Pitch Perfect actress Anna Kendrick also used the opportunity to pile it on the Coldplay frontman, tweeting: "Even Chris Martin is like, what am I doing here?"
Chris Martin was the Left Shark of this year's halftime show pic.twitter.com/MWV9B0VkcK— Spencer Althouse (@SpencerAlthouse) February 8, 2016
Even Chris Martin is like, what am I doing here?— Anna Kendrick (@AnnaKendrick47) February 8, 2016
In an interview with CBS before the show, Martin said his daughter Apple tried to comfort him with the following sage advice:
"Dad, the worst that could happen is that you'll get turned into a meme, and after a month or so people will just forget!"' he said.
Sorry Apple, but tell that to left shark.
As someone who has been booked as a headliner only to have the audience enjoy other performers more, I deeply relate to Coldplay.— Josh Gondelman (@joshgondelman) February 8, 2016
Beyonce smiling next to Chris Martin is every woman who's ever had to momentarily dim her shine to work alongside a mediocre man #SB50— Anna Drezen (@annadrezen) February 8, 2016
Beyonce with her hand on Chris Martin’s shoulder like ‘it’s ok you can walk with us”— Jon Caramanica (@joncaramanica) February 8, 2016
"Please clap." - Chris Martin— Tricia Gilbride (@tricia_gilbride) February 8, 2016
Being on stage with Beyoncé and Bruno Mars makes Chris Martin look like he won a contest from Bud Light. #SB50— Bryan Donaldson (@TheNardvark) February 8, 2016
When you're trying to have a party and then Chris Martin shows up pic.twitter.com/Pb28Ot4Jfy— Ray Rahman (@RayRahman) February 8, 2016
