Over the past eight and a half years, Fortnite has released thousands of cosmetic items. Skins are the most popular cosmetics in the game, but emotes are right after them in terms of popularity. Interestingly, some of the items have been vaulted for more than seven years, and one of them is the Fresh emote.

Fresh is the rarest Fortnite emote of all time. It was last available in 2018, more than seven years ago, but Epic Games may bring it back soon. The game developer hinted at its return recently, so we can expect it to be unvaulted over the next few weeks.

The exclusive emote was involved in a lawsuit, which is a big reason why it hasn’t returned in so long.

Will the rarest Fresh emote return to Fortnite?

Fresh was among the first cosmetic items to be released in Fortnite. It debuted on December 16, 2017, shortly after Epic released the Item Shop. However, its last appearance was on November 21, 2018, during the second Fortnitemares event. Since its release in late 2017, the emote has only appeared in the shop on 30 different occasions.

In a recent social media post, Fortnite used the Fresh emote to show off a new skin. On top of this, the Brazilian Fortnite account replied with the “👀” emoji to the users who pointed out the rare emote in the trailer.

While this is far from the official confirmation, it wouldn’t be the first time that Epic has revealed a return of a rare item in a similar fashion. If Fresh returns, though, it will lose its ultra-rare status, similar to other once-rare cosmetics that have recently returned.

The Fresh emote controversy

Back in late 2018, the Fresh emote was in the midst of a Fortnite controversy. The emote is allegedly based on a dance performed by Carlton in Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Alfonso Ribeiro, the actor who portrayed Carlton, sued Epic Games. Ribeiro tried to copyright the dance move but was rejected by the U.S. Copyright Office.

“The combination of these three dance steps is a simple routine that is not registrable as a choreographic work,” Saskia Florence, a member of the Copyright Office’s Performing Arts division, pointed out after describing the emote.

In the end, the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air dropped the lawsuit against Epic Games, but the Fresh emote hasn’t returned to the Item Shop since then. Epic may bring it back soon, and if this happens, it will likely become the best-selling item in the shop.

While waiting for the return, check out the rarest skins in Fortnite. You can also unlock the free Yeddy skin this season, as well as a pair of free Kicks.