You've likely come across this meme before: a fully-bearded man nodding with a smile in a direct show of approval.

For many Internet users, that man was believed to be actor Zach Galifianakis, who has appeared in films such as "The Hangover."

Turns out we were completely wrong. That man is actually Robert Redford.

The GIF was taken from the 1972 film "Jeremiah Johnson," according to Know Your Meme, a website which explains the most popular viral memes and GIFs spreading around the internet.

A scene from the movie shows Redford nodding approvingly as the camera zooms closer to his face.

The GIF has been circulating online as early as 2012, says Know Your Meme.

But the Internet didn't go into a frenzy about this GIF until Tuesday, when a story from Splinter News published Tuesday on Redford's connection.

Meanwhile, several users were perplexed how people never realized it was Redford the whole time.

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.