Released in November 2025 in the US, and globally in January 2026, Heated Rivalry (HR), HBO’s queer-joy-celebrating sexy TV tale of two rival-but-secretly-in-love male ice hockey stars, has broken viewership records and spawned all-consuming fan obsession, most notably – and surprisingly to many – among middle-aged women, spurring an important reconsideration of what female viewers really want.

After a four-year hiatus, K-pop boy band BTS returned in March with a new album and reunion concert, successfully remobilising ARMY, the group’s ardent fans. Besides worldwide real-life watch parties and a Netflix streaming bonanza, the band’s return is signalling ascendant national pride among South Koreans, sparking intergenerational online bonding and heralding a new era in the K-wave’s global influence.

A masterclass in resuscitating a dormant fandom, in March, Disney launched a 20th-anniversary celebration of beloved kids’ TV and music franchise Hannah Montana (2006-2011), performed by pop icon Miley Cyrus. It included a TV special, new (original) single and brand-deal bonanza, kick-starting a love-in among millennial fans and revealing a gateway to comebacks for similarly beloved Y2K-era intellectual property.

In March, the new trailer for A24 horror movie Backrooms, adapted from a YouTube series about terrifying liminal spaces (often resembling familiar-yet-eerie abandoned offices) caused a surge in activity from its prolific fandom, devoted to grappling with the internet/AI age’s unreality. We decode its mythology, continued growth and artistry, and its role as progenitor of the internet-born horror content now influencing mainstream pop culture.