would you pay for fan service?
some cosplayers charge between $5-200 for various types of fan service, from one-on-one video chats to head massages.
welcome to strong feelings! Essays by writers we love, in which they share their most impassioned opinions on a given subject. In today’s strong feelings, writer Maalvika Bhat explores the “fan service industrial complex” created by cosplayers all over the world.
In 1939, Morojo and her boyfriend Forest J. Ackerman created cosplay by accident. The pair wore hand-made “futuristicostumes” inspired by the film Things To Come to the first World Science Fiction convention, unknowingly launching a sector of fandom that would evolve into a multi-billion-dollar industry.
Fast forward 80 years, and a quick scroll through the feeds of cosplayers like Yaya Han or Anastasia Komori reveals just how far we’ve come from those early convention hall gatherings. A single “casual Genshin Impact cosplay” video can generate millions of views — and thousands of dollars in revenue — through a carefully orchestrated dance of platform algorithms, fan engagement, and character embodiment.
Take Rurusama for example, a cosplayer with almost 2.8M followers who regularly assumes the identities of characters like Misa Amane from Death Note or C.C. from Code Geass. Rurusama charges for fan service — anywhere between $20-$50 dollars to engage in tropes with fans like head massages ($20) and the pepero challenge ($50). And she’s not the only one: Top creators can earn six-figure incomes through a sophisticated blend of performance art, digital marketing, and parasocial connection.
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It wasn’t until the advent of social media that cosplay transformed from pure creative expression into what fan studies scholar Nicolle Lamerichs calls a "fantasy exchange market" — where creativity, commerce, and community intertwine as currencies of connection.
This transformation created a thriving ecosystem, and the global cosplay market is now projected to grow from $4.6B (2020) to $23B by 2030. At its core lies fan service — strategic moments of connection between cosplayers and their audiences, ranging from in-character convention interactions to crafted social content that bridges fantasy and reality.
This spectrum of content increasingly includes steamy material, as many characters' canonical designs and storylines already contain suggestive material. The line between character-accurate cosplay and adult content often blurs, particularly on platforms like Patreon where creators can maintain separate tiers for different content types — from family-friendly convention photos to more intimate character interpretations that cater to specific interests and fantasies.
From my conversations with eight cosplayers, the typical pricing tiers range from $5-15 a month for exclusive photoshoots and behind-the-scenes content, to $10-50 a month for personalized video messages, with some creators offering premium tiers of $50-200 a month for custom character commissions and one-on-one video chats.
“The relationship between cosplayers and fans has evolved a bit like the relationship between K-pop idols and their fans, but not in a toxic way," said cosplayer Ishida. "When I first started cosplaying…fans would ask to take pictures, we'd take pictures together, or they'd send cute messages. Now, supporters have started to idolize their favorite cosplayers even more. Through fan service, we can communicate more with our supporters, get to know them better, and express our gratitude.” This evolution mirrors a broader shift in digital culture, where the lines between creator and community grow increasingly permeable.
Audiences don't want to pretend the person in the costume has actually become their favorite character; they want to participate in a more complex dance of acknowledged fantasy and genuine connection. "I'm not delusional," said a fan, 31, who preferred to remain anonymous. "I know these characters aren't real. But they've helped me through some of my darkest times. So when I can interact with someone who feels like meeting that character, even for a minute — it becomes the highlight of my month."
Where traditional entertainment asks audiences to suspend disbelief, modern cosplay operates in a more sophisticated territory – one where the obvious artifice of the performance becomes part of its appeal. This economy of connection often follows predictable trajectories of escalation. "There's definitely a pipeline," shared one creator, 22, who wished to remain anonymous. "You start with cute in-character photos, then fans request spicier versions, and suddenly you're running multiple accounts for different content types. The transition feels natural because you're still in character… just exploring different sides of that character."
This progression mirrors broader patterns in creator-fan relationships across digital spaces, where intimacy and access become increasingly intertwined currencies. After all, these beloved characters don't just fight battles and save worlds – they also have sexy romantic subplots, wear revealing battle outfits, and inspire countless fan fantasies. Many creators navigate this landscape by maintaining multiple content tiers and separate platforms, each offering different levels of access and types of content while still preserving the core fantasy of character embodiment. Each platform serves a distinct purpose in this ecosystem: Patreon for recurring subscriptions and exclusive content, Discord servers for community interaction and real-time engagement, and specialized adult platforms like OnlyFans for more intimate character interpretations – all carefully compartmentalized to maintain appropriate boundaries between their different audiences.
Celebrities maintain value through an engineered scarcity of access, but cosplayers have invented something new: an economy of manufactured abundance. This system operates through what we might call “participatory parasocial connection,” where both creator and fan actively acknowledge the constructed nature of their relationship while collaboratively maintaining its emotional authenticity. For many fans, the appeal lies precisely in this intersection of fantasy and reality — where attraction to a fictional character merges with attraction to the creator's embodiment of that character. One fan, 36, said: "[Cosplay] is more exciting than regular adult content because of that shared understanding of the character” Another fan, 19, said: "It's different from following a celebrity. We are doing something together."
And no one’s being hoodwinked here. What makes these relationships particularly powerful is how they fulfill complex psychological needs while openly acknowledging their constructed nature. “I spend about $200 a month [on Patreon] supporting various cosplayers,” shared one fan, 36. “My therapist actually thinks it's healthy — it gives me safe ways to process emotions through character interactions without the vulnerability of "‘real’ relationships.” Would it be hyperbolic to say that cosplay might be peeling back the layers to modern intimacy? Perhaps authenticity isn't about the absence of performance, but the honest acknowledgment of it.
This evolution of cosplay from hobby to profession has spawned entirely new forms of cultural capital, each essential to success in the modern landscape. Technical capital — the ability to transform impossible designs into wearable art — remains foundational but is no longer sufficient on its own. This must be paired with digital capital: the sophisticated understanding of algorithms, content strategy, and platform dynamics that determines visibility in online spaces. Character capital goes beyond mere costume accuracy — it requires deep understanding of how characters resonate within fan communities. The magic happens when a creator can blend technical skills, digital savvy, and raw emotional authenticity into something that hits differently than traditional entertainment. Like watching a chef who knows not just how to cook, but how to turn a meal into a memory.
In the end, modern cosplay reveals something profound about human adaptability — our ability to reinvent ancient drives for connection and transformation within new technological contexts. What began as fans dressing up to show their love for fictional characters has evolved into something far more sophisticated: a testing ground for authentic human connection in digital space. “After wearing a wig for the first time, something just clicked,” said Ishida. “I felt powerful, almost like one of those main characters discovering their superpower for the first time. Even now, years later, I’m still amazed at how cosplay helped me open up and discover myself. It taught me so much more than just how to make costumes.”
As we move further into an era where our interactions are mediated through screens, the innovations pioneered by cosplay culture may offer valuable insights into how we can maintain genuine human warmth in increasingly digital environments. The future of this art form promises even more intriguing possibilities, as virtual and augmented reality technologies blur the lines between physical and digital performance! But at its heart, cosplay's greatest contribution may be showing us how to preserve authenticity even as we embrace the performance inherent in digital life itself.
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This article was so well written and thought provoking! I never thought about how cosplay can be a healthy way to explore celebrity, relationships, and community, but this article really proves that. Great work!