Fandoms Ranked by How Much They Scare Me
Words by Jasmine Starr (she/her)
Between bitchiness and bigotry, political activism and world domination, popular fandoms are ultimately scary.
For something dismissed as a trashy waste of time, they sure have an awful lot of sway in how the world is shaped.
#5: Supernatural fans aka the SPNFamily
The SPNFamily is devoted to Supernatural, a 15-season fantasy drama that follows brothers Sam and Dean Winchester as they hunt monsters, demons, and gods. The fandom has spawned so many iconic memes. Like in 2020, when a scene between Dean and his long-hinted love interested Castiel became a viral meme, known as ‘Destiel Confession’. And on April Fool's day in 2013, fans took over Tumblr by switching their avatars to a photo of actor Misha Collins’ — also known as Mishapocalypse.
However, while the SPNFamily can be hilarious – the fandom itself was founded on shipping incest.
Supernatural’s fandom has always really liked the protagonists’ brotherly relationship. Regardless of whether they viewed it as platonic or incestuous, new characters — particularly women — were perceived as nothing but a threat to Sam and Dean’s dynamic. Whenever the show tried to introduce fresh female faces, talk boards exploded with unspeakably misogynistic comments.
The showrunners listened. From Bela to Ellen, Ruby to Jo, Supernatural’s creators killed off women to appease the frothing masses. While the SPNFamily has cooled down significantly, they were once powerful enough to alter the course of the show they worshipped.
#4: The Warrior Cats fandom
Warriors is a book series about the adventures and drama of feral cat clans. There are 120 books. By the time I turned ten, I had read them all. I firmly believe the Warriors fandom is one of a mighty coalition, conspiring to convince small children to make embarrassing fanfics that'll haunt them for the rest of their lives. I once made a comprehensive list of ways Donald Trump was breaking the ‘Warrior Code’.
The fear isn’t just personal, though. True fans will remember the animations, the stars on foreheads, “Firestar Doesn’t Like Waffles.”
But while the Warriors series is aimed at children, the fandom is no place for them. Hate is directed at anyone that doesn’t remember all 1,400+ characters. Debates spiraled over ‘true’ canon eye colours — even though the authors were at fault for not keeping their characters the same. White saviour plotlines and thinly veiled racism against indigenous people was dissected constantly.
And while some argue the book series is for mature kids, no amount of maturity can prepare you for this fandom.
#3: The Hunger Games fans aka Tributes
Tributes are the fandoms for The Hunger Games, a trilogy of books about a dystopia where the rich entertain themselves by watching children slaughter each other on TV. This has been adapted into a film franchise, with an adaptation of the new book, Sunrise on the Reaping, already on the way.
Delving into the fandom, it’s immediately clear Tributes are shining examples of cognitive dissonance. What's meant to be dystopian feels increasingly real as fans beg for more Hunger Games trials. I’m not convinced they wouldn’t start a real Hunger Games if given the chance.
Some Reddit users insist it’s really not that different from watching hockey or NASCAR. Others shrug away the atrocities, saying the impressive setup and good production value is appealing. One user argues the games are a ‘cultural tradition’ in Panem and we shouldn’t be too quick to judge with our ‘modern mindsets’. This being a futuristic dystopian novel.
#2: BTS ARMY
K-pop stans have arguably done the most good compared to other fandoms. They’ve flooded the #AllLivesMatter and #WhiteLivesMatter hashtags with clips of their favourite idols. They've inundated Texas police’s protest reporting app with fancams until it was forced to shut down. And they've raised millions for children's hospitals, tree plantings, and Australian bushfire restoration.
The BTS ARMY, stans of the seven-member South Korean boy group BTS, are one of the largest K-pop fandoms — and a powerhouse of political activism. With BTS having 75 million followers on Instagram alone, they’re an army to be reckoned with.
In 2020, K-Pop fans used their competitive ticket-buying skills to reserve thousands of tickets for an Oklahoma Trump rally before MAGA fanatics. This left nearly 70% of seats empty.
That same month, BTS donated $1 million USD to the Black Lives Matter movement. And their fans matched the donation through crowdsourcing.
But in such a large fanbase, it’s impossible not to find some rotten eggs. Obsessive fans who engage in stalking and invasive behaviour are so common in the K-pop industry that Korea has a specific word for them — saesang.
BTS are unfortunately not immune to these dangerous fans. In October 2023, BTS member V was allegedly followed home by a saesang. She entered his building and followed him into the elevator, before handing him a marriage certificate. Police later used the stalkers information on the marriage certificate to find her. This is only one of many instances members have had with saesangs over the years.
Saesang fans are so prevalent within ARMY that BIGHIT MUSIC, BTS’ label, released a long public blacklist of all their known saesang fans. Most of those blacklisted run well known BTS fansites online.
Needless to say, I’m sure BTS are even more scared than I am.
#1: Taylor Swift fans aka Swifties
Ah, Swifties. Everywhere I turn, there’s a Taylor Swift fan. My friends. My classmates. My past self. Maybe even you. They’re hungry for justice. If you ever cross their idol, they will burn you to the ground.
During 2023 ticket sales for The Eras Tour, Ticketmaster was so swamped it crashed. Devout fans across the world missed out on tickets. The company offered nothing but a meek apology. Swifties swiftly mobilised, and two months later, the president of Ticketmaster was dragged in front of the US Senate. Here, senators across the partisan line quoted Taylor Swift's songs. This fandom infiltrated the US government.
But what makes Swifties so scary is they are not afraid to target their own leader.
Like in 2019, when Swifites turned on Taylor Swift after Kim Kardashian leaked a misleading recording of Swift approving Kanye's lyrics, "I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex" in his song ‘Famous’. After thousands of snake emoji comments flooded Swift's social media, she went into hiding for a year.
Just last year, Swifities turned on Swift again when her private jet usage was revealed, showing she took flights as short as four miles. While most fans defended her saying other celebrities were just as bad, others turned their backs on the singer.
When Swifities have had Taylor's back, it’s often gone to the extreme. Death threats towards her ex-boyfriends are common, with Jake Gyllenhaal and John Mayer bearing the brunt of this.
With the strength of Swifites, I wouldn't want to be one of her exes. But honestly? I wouldn't wanna be Taylor either.