Netizens almost deceived by EXO's Chanyeol for looking identical to his debut era

Netizens were nearly fooled by EXO's Chanyeol for "not looking a day older" than during his debut era twelve years ago.

On an online forum, fans reacted to a series of photos uploaded on X by a fan who captured Chanyeol at a fansign event in Beijing. For the occasion, Chanyeol prepared several conceptual looks, including one that was an exact replica of his appearance from EXO's debut era when they promoted "Wolf" in 2013.

Netizens admitted they were momentarily 'dumbfounded' when they saw the photos, believing they were from 2013. They were shocked to learn the photos had actually been taken just days earlier, on September 12, 2025.

While some argued the images looked slightly 'edited' and could make him appear younger, others who recently saw Chanyeol in person insisted in the comments that he "still looks the same in real life."

Many "could not believe" the photos were recent, commenting that it "legit looks like Chanyeol went through a rebirth" and brought his 2013 self back to life, especially for longtime fans who vividly remember that era.

Reactions include:

"Huh??? I thought these were debut photos, but it’s actually recentㅋㅋㅋㅋ"

"Feels like he’s about to shout 'Ssaranghaeyo! I’m the wolf and you’re the beauty!' right now. Wow… unreal."

"Not just his face, but the clothes makes him look like that era. The hat literally says wolf, so it feels like the 'Wolf' days."

"He’s defying time."

"It looks like 2013…"

"Checking his recent photos on Instagram, he really did manage himself insanely well. Looks exactly like debut days."

"But seriously, all the EXO members didn’t gain weight. At that many years in, idols usually put on a little, but they didn’t…"

"What? Why… why… does he look exactly the same as debut?????"

"Am I time-traveling back to 2013 right now?????"

"?????????????????"

"I only realized these weren’t past photos after reading the comments, crazyㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ"

"Wow, he looks the same as 12 years ago."

"Wow, crazy… he managed himself so well."

"What, he looks exactly the same as ages ago."

"Wait, isn’t this really from the 'Wolf' era?"

"Got to admit, he really took good care of himself. Looks exactly like the past."

"Holy crapㅋㅋㅋ looks exactly like the 'Wolf' era."

"Wow, I thought it was an old photo."

"This photo is from a fansite so you can tell it’s heavily edited, so I searched up Chanyeol’s press pics, and even those show he looks young for someone born in ’92. For the record, I was a fan during the 'Wolf' and 'Growl' era, but I’m not a fan nowㅋㅋ"

"I swear I’m not an EXO fan, but even if the skin is edited a lot, it still gives the exact same vibe from back thenㅋㅋㅋㅋ"

"Wait, is this not reverse aging??? He looks the same.."

"Holy, he really looks the same, that’s insane."

"Huh? This isn’t from the 'Wolf' era? Really? Wow, I was a fan back then and he looks exactly the same??"

"Wait? This is unbelievable… looks like 2013."

"This is 2025???"

"He seriously looks just like the 'Growl' era;;;"

"I thought people were joking, but this is real."

"This feels weird, it’s the face I used to see when I was in elementary school."

What are your thoughts?

SEE ALSO: EXO signals long-awaited group comeback with mysterious teaser referencing their debut era