Donald Glover’s new show dives into the captivating world of stan culture.
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00:00Beyonce's fans are the inspiration behind Donald Glover's new show,
00:04so we need to talk about the phenomenon known as stan culture. Prime Video's Swarm follows
00:08a young woman named Dre, whose entire life revolves around her admiration of a global pop
00:12star. Creators Donald Glover and Janine Neighbors, who are behind the hit series Atlanta, drew
00:16particular inspiration from Beyonce and her beehive. Dre feeds into what is known as stan
00:20culture, or online communities of fans who engage in enthusiastic support and oftentimes defense of
00:26a celebrity. Swarm highlights how celebrity stan culture often creates parasocial relationships.
00:31These one-sided relationships have only been magnified by the internet and social media,
00:36where individuals can follow the public figure more closely and even communicate with them,
00:40thus increasing the intimacy and strength of the relationship. Although Glover's character
00:44takes this idea to a violent extreme, parasocial relationships are often harmless, and one study
00:49even showed that they can broaden one's social network rather than restrict it. Swarm premieres
00:53on Amazon Prime Video today, March 17th.