Disclaimer: The following description is only about those who give fans a bad name. I am well aware that there are a lot of those in the fandom that do not fit this description so please don't take offence or think that I am grouping everyone into this category. As mentioned before, a lot of fans are respectful individuals and will never be like what I am about to describe from what I have seen.
They swarm theatres...they swarm the malls...all you hear is how much they love a certain actor or series. You go onto Tumblr, one of their hotspots, and you see post after post of their reactions to a certain episode...in fact, they spoil episode plots to all the popular shows...it is a common, but sorry sight.
Who are such people?
They are the fangirls and fanboys.
Unlike the more respectful fans in the fandoms, they seem more heavily obsessed. All they can talk about is their favourite book, film, show or thespian to the point that they don't know about anything else in the world.
In public places, like a movie theatre, they are frequently heard in line and in the theatres themselves, obsessing over their twisted fantasies and objectifying those they fantasize about. I've seen this first hand.
They go onto Facebook fan pages and share all posts and images they can find to their profiles, ignoring warnings about copyrighted content, such as written work. Their profiles only consist of their obsessions...there's nothing about them personally, not even a rare post about what's going on in their lives.
While on fan pages for actors, they frequently describe how much that particular person makes them swoon and often mention highly sexual things involving the two of them...no matter how far-fetched it sounds.
There are also fan pages started by such individuals which promote disrespect of the actor or actress through treating them only like an object to be controlled and taken. In the fandoms I was a part of, I frequently cringed when I saw how such people talked about Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch...if either man saw these posts, he would be afraid...very, very afraid. It also explains why some actors avoid social media altogether.
Such pages also scour the internet for the latest news and gossip about the celebrities they obsess over. Facebook and Tumblr become plastered with personal announcements and dating rumors. Pictures of Martin Freeman's children were circulated around both sites against his and Amanda Abbington's wishes because Benedict Cumberbatch was in the images as well.
Personal privacy is not something that is considered for the actors. It is a truly frightening thing when you see it firsthand. In the two pages I manage on Facebook, I constantly preach about respect...and I speak out against treating actors like objects. They are human beings, plain and simple!
Fan shaming is probably the worst behaviour exhibited by fangirls and fanboys. During the stretch of Coriolanus last year, Tumblr and Facebook were both filled to the brim with posts of people being shamed for their behaviour at the performances. And, most of the time, those who were being shamed were the ones exposing the bad behaviour of others at the theatre and at the stage door. Even fans who were clever enough to be able to go to more than one performance were shamed because others couldn't go and see it.
This is the behaviour of a bully, plain and simple. Fandoms are joined with the lure of acceptance, but the fangirls and fanboys quickly show you what a nightmare it really is. People are afraid to post about meeting their favourite actor/actress or getting tickets to the sold out performance of Hamlet because they will be targeted or ridiculed out of sheer jealousy.
You can't easily pick out a fangirl or fanboy on appearance alone. A lot of the cosplayers are respectable fans that like to dress up as their favourite characters. But, that area of the fandom is also riddled with bullying and fan shaming as well. In a world that now preaches tolerance, fans are afraid to be fans on their own terms. It is sad and utterly ridiculous.
Fans should be fans on their own terms...but not if it hurts other fans in the process. Fangirls and fanboys need to respect that golden rule.
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