Since the early days of Hollywood, people have been interested in the lives of celebrities. In the 1940s, gossip columns began spotlighting the scandals, rumors and affairs of celebrities, including movie stars and singers. These columns captivated the public and gave formerly detached readers a closer view of Hollywood and its celebrities. This obsessive look into these icons created an unhealthy culture that would lead to consequences for both the celebrities and their fans.

John Lennon was murdered by Mark Chapman, an obsessed fan who became disillusioned with the Beatles because of how rich they had become and believed the singer to be a hypocrite. Princess Diana was killed in a car crash while fleeing paparazzi on motorcycles, a frequent problem for the icon before her death.

These are two terrible instances of celebrity obsessions turning fatal, but I believe parasocial relationships with celebrities have gotten worse with the rise of social media. People now use social media to delve deeper into the lives of celebrities ranging from where they eat lunch, to analyzing if they broke up with their partner or where their family members live. These obsessions may often seem innocent but can have negative effects on the celebrity and the people who interact with these relationships.

Chappell Roan recently shared a sequence of videos lashing out at stalkers and fans who had been making her uncomfortable with non-consensual social interactions. These videos included shouting out of her window to stalkers tracking down family members. She blamed the new digital age that gives fans an artificial sense of familiarity, as many fans now constantly expect interactions, photos and personal information.

Roan shares in a TikTok, “I don’t care that it’s normal. I don’t care that this crazy type of behavior comes along with the job, the career field I’ve chosen. That does not make it OK, that doesn’t make it normal. That doesn’t mean that I want it, that doesn’t mean that I like it.”

While parasocial relationships were dangerous for celebrities in the past, there is a heightened danger in the digital age as more fans assume a personal relationship with the celebrity.

This familiarity in the digital age has also led fans to assume that they know what’s best for celebrities or that they would even be a better romantic partner for them. Aaron Taylor-Johnson is a recent example of this obsessive behavior with fans criticizing his wife and their relationship, with fans even campaigning for him to be freed.

While the start of their relationship raised concerns due to their age difference, fans’ obsession over Taylor-Johnson’s freedom comes from hoping for his availability rather than his happiness. When he was spotted not wearing his engagement ring, fans were quick to celebrate, hoping it meant divorce and his subsequent availability.

Divorce is difficult and should be viewed with sympathy for both parties involved. Why would people think it’s okay to publicly celebrate it in the case of a celebrity? Parasocial relationships cause people to lose decency when responding to difficult circumstances, effectively only seeing the celebrity as someone available for pleasure.

These parasocial relationships not only bode badly for celebrities but for their fans as well. Fan cultures like Stan Twitter have become battlegrounds for online bullying and death threats. Hate is not only focused on the celebrities in these circumstances, but also on the user, as people hate others for liking or not liking certain celebrities or content.

Hate can range from basic bullying, death threats, homophobia, transphobia and racism, hurting people significantly in the process. Some of the most toxic stan encounters are in the K-pop community, with one instance including EXO fans sending hate messages to BTS fans because of the band’s rising popularity.

It’s okay for people to be fans of celebrities, especially if they enjoy their content and want to show appreciation. However, we must not assume familiarity by recognizing celebrities as strangers and acknowledging that people can have different opinions. Otherwise, the digital world will only make parasocial relationships worse and hurt more people.

Lily Fitzgerald can be reached at [email protected]