“Only when I cosplay do I feel like I am truly myself. I don’t like who I am in my daily life, but once I step into the world of cosplay, I become incredibly confident,” said Xiao Le, a cosplayer from southern China whom I interviewed. XiaoLe is currently a university student and also runs her own online accounts. Despite her significant online popularity, she rarely interacts with people in real life and often experiences a profound disconnect between her online personaand her everyday self. Xiao Le further mentioned that she feels deeply entrenched in a rigidly binary gender system, a belief she personally accepts. To her, biological sex is one’s innate gender—a common perspective in Asian societies. To be honest, as someone who has also grown up within a binary gender society, my own understanding of gender diversity is quite limited. Consequently, my exploration of cosplay primarily adheres to the gender binary. Throughout my exploration, I discovered cosplay to be a unique cultural phenomenon in Asia. In many East Asian societies, male masculinity often comes under scrutiny. Men who exhibit traits perceived as feminine or artistic typically face social rejection or even hostility. Scholar Yen Ling Shek notes, “Asian cultural values, such as humility and communalism, were feminized and challenged the appropriateness of traits in hegemonic masculinity such as confidence, individualism, and competition.” ¹ Within this context, cosplay serves as a unique outlet. In cosplay communities, many Asianmen freely explore gender expression, including portraying female characters, thereby escaping societal criticism regarding their masculinity. Cosplay culture grants Asian men unprecedented freedom, offering broader spaces to authentically express themselves, thus challenging traditional gender norms. For Xiao Le, although her cosplay is within the same gender, it remains a significant method of identity exploration. When performing as an anime character, she adopts the character’s mindset, demonstrating the performer’s creative engagement with the role.

Under the dazzling lights of anime conventions and within the virtual spaces of streaming platforms, a fascinating transformation is taking place: ordinary individuals become fantastical characters, stepping into identities that defy conventional social expectations. Cosplay is far more than simply donning costumes; it is a dynamic act of performance that fuses identity, gender, and self-expression. In East Asian countries such as China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea, cosplay has increasingly become a powerful medium through which individuals challenge and explore traditional binary gender norms. Whether through the exaggerated feminization of Weiniang (伪娘) performances or the gender-fluid practice of crossplay, cosplay blurs the lines between reality and fiction, questioning what it means to “perform gender.”

This paper, drawing on Richard Schechner’s (2002) theory of performance, conceptualizes cosplay as a form of performance that simultaneously subverts and reinforces traditional gender binaries. By analyzing cases of cross-gender performance, produsage (productive usage), and the commercialization of gendered performances, this paper argues that cosplay is not merely entertainment; it serves as a window into the complex interactions between identity, culture, and expression in East Asian societies.

Introduction

Schechner (2002) defines performance as a repetitive act situated within a cultural framework, involving audience interaction, embodiment, and a state of liminality. Cosplay embodies these elements, allowing individuals to temporarily enter alternative identities, often centered around gender expectations. This paper proposes that cosplay constitutes a gendered form of performance that, through cross-gender roleplay and commercialization, provides individuals in East Asia with a gentle means to engage with, and at times transgress, gender limitations, offering a pathway to more authentic self-expression.

This paper centers on the lived experiences of Xiaole, a participant within cosplay culture, whose personal accounts provide an insider’s view into this phenomenon. While acknowledging the inherent subjectivity of such a perspective, this exploration offers insight into what I believe cosplay fundamentally represents.

Case Study 1: Crossplay and Gender Performance

One of the most prominent expressions of gender performance in cosplay is crossplay—the practice of portraying characters of a different gender. Leng (2013), drawing upon Judith Butler’s theory of gender performativity, argues that male crossplayers, by exaggerating traditional feminine traits, clearly expose the socially constructed nature of gender.

Similarly, Galbraith (2013) notes that cosplay in Japan and Australia provides a “safe space” for exploring gender identities. Xiaole’s experiences strongly align with this observation. In her view, wearing a cosplay costume transforms her, granting her confidence and courage to showcase herself on online platforms. Cosplay costumes offer her a space for self-presentation that is free from the constraints and judgments tied to her everyday identity.

The interview with cosplayer Scoot, featured in the video similarly highlights this transformative process—from initial self-doubt to authentic self-expression through cosplay performances related to gaming characters. For many, cosplay represents an act of embodying an ACG (anime, comics, games) character, offering a temporary escape from the limitations of their biological bodies and allowing them to live as the characters they aspire to become.

In East Asia, as ACG culture moves from a marginalized subculture into an increasingly socially recognized arena, cosplay performances have become more widely accepted by mainstream audiences. This growing acceptance enables performers to use cosplay as a protected space, temporarily shedding their everyday identities and becoming the characters they choose to embody.

Case Study 2: Produsage in Gender Performance

In Cosplay culture, the reproduction of costumes is merely the surface; the core lies in the creative reinterpretation of characters and the rearticulation of cultural meanings. As an experienced cosplayer, Xiaole points out that Cosplay is not limited to the replication of costumes; rather, it is a process of creative reconstruction of characters through individual understanding and interpretation. This phenomenon has been conceptualized by Nichols (2019) as “produsage”—a fusion of production and usage. Through produsage, cosplayers not only consume the original culture but also actively participate in its reproduction, challenging existing gender and power structures, particularly the traditionally male-dominated discursive systems.

An illustrative example of this cultural mechanism can be observed at the 2021 China International Cartoon & Game Expo (CCG Expo), in the Cosplay of Genshin Impact characters Venti and Klee. Venti, a male character with delicate, feminine features and ambiguous gender characteristics, is often portrayed by female cosplayers; conversely, Klee, a young female character, is frequently cross-played by male cosplayers. This mismatch between character and performer genders indicates that, within Cosplay culture, gender boundaries are deliberately blurred, shifting the focus of performance towards the traits of the character itself rather than the biological sex of the performer.

In particular, Venti’s case demonstrates the high degree of inclusivity and flexibility regarding cross-gender performance within ACG (anime, comics, and games) culture. By reinterpreting characters, cosplayers explore gender fluidity and transcend the performative constraints of the traditional binary gender framework. Masculinity, in this context, is de-emphasized and no longer serves as the singular ideal. The freedom of gender performance holds special significance in East Asian cultural environments, where Cosplay culture functions as a “safe space” that embraces diversity and non-normative gender expressions.

Although academic research on this phenomenon remains limited, emerging trends suggest that the male demographic within China’s ACG community is undergoing a process of social elitization. Unlike traditional Western standards of masculinity, which emphasize strength and ruggedness, China’s elite ACG-affiliated males often possess characteristics such as coming from upper-middle-class backgrounds, achieving outstanding academic results, graduating from top domestic or international universities, and sometimes participating in international STEM competitions (such as the International Olympiad). These attributes have formed a unique synergy with ACG culture.

This phenomenon suggests a subtle shift in the definition of “successful masculinity” within East Asian societies. The close interaction between mainstream pathways to success and ACG culture has enabled men to embody traits such as humility and sensitivity—qualities traditionally marginalized in masculine ideals—thus gradually pushing ACG culture from a niche interest into broader societal acceptance. This cultural transformation not only broadens the modes of masculine expression but also elevates the societal recognition of ACG culture, making it an integral part of contemporary East Asian cultural shifts.

Case Study 3: Weiniang and the Commercialization of Gender Performance

During conversations with Xiaole, we touched upon the topic of nanniang (male-to-female cosplayers), an especially intriguing group. The phenomenon of Weiniang (伪娘)—a uniquely East Asian manifestation of feminized male cosplay—demonstrates the commercialization dimension of gender performance within cosplay culture. Chao (2017) analyzed the “Alice Cos Group” as an example of how this group leveraged Japan’s Kawaii culture and Korea’s Aegyo culture to successfully commercialize gender performance through online platforms, television programs, and merchandise sales.

Much like Western drag shows, Weiniang performances illustrate how male cross-gender expression can be monetized and transformed into an economic asset.

The conceptual framework of Otokonoko (男の娘) further visualizes the theory of male feminization within East Asian culture. Central to the identity of Weiniang performers is the concept of kawaii (meaning “cute” in Japanese). Possessing kawaii traits is essential; within this framework, the Weiniang community encompasses cross-dressing, feminine cognitive styles, and sometimes even gender transitioning. These facets enable male performers within Weiniang culture to express themselves and assert confidence in their identities.

Weiniang performances are typically closely connected with ACG (anime, comics, games) culture, incorporating numerous cosplay elements. These elements allow cosplay and ACG audiences—already familiar with nontraditional expressions—to be more accepting of male performers who display few traditional masculine traits. In the context of China, it is notable that the world’s most valuable companies related to ACG-based online gaming and streaming are Chinese enterprises: miHoYo and Bilibili, respectively. As previously mentioned, characters like Venti and Klee, who are frequently portrayed in cosplay, originate from miHoYo’s game Genshin Impact. According to Cao and Yang (2025), the commercial success of major entertainment companies such as miHoYo represents the successful commercialization of ACG culture. Consequently, cosplay-related commercial activities have become increasingly diversified. Through the incorporation of localized cultural elements, an expanding number of people are gradually accepting these commercialized cultural performances, including those featuring reduced expressions of traditional masculinity and Weiniang performances. Furthermore, as Yin, Yiyi, and Anthony Fung (2017) observe, Bilibili—originally a niche platform focused on subcultural content—successfully completed its IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and has achieved significant market valuation. This demonstrates that in East Asia, the commercialization of subcultural content is becoming an increasingly important and mainstream phenomenon.

 Conclusion

This paper examines cosplay as a transformative mode of gender performance within East Asian societies, emphasizing three main dimensions: crossplay, produsage, and commercialization. Based on Richard Schechner’s (2002) performance theory, cosplay is analyzed as both a subversive and reconstructive practice that challenges and occasionally reinforces traditional gender binaries. Drawing on first-hand experiences, particularly through the case study of cosplayer Xiaole, the paper highlights how cosplay allows individuals to engage with gender fluidity in a culturally resonant and personally empowering way. Crossplay, the act of portraying a character of a different gender, reveals the socially constructed nature of gender roles by emphasizing character traits over biological sex. Studies by Leng (2013) and Galbraith (2013) demonstrate that cosplay provides a “safe space” for experimenting with gender identity, a phenomenon strongly reflected in Xiaole’s own transformation when performing cosplay. The concept of produsage, articulated by Nichols (2019), shows how cosplayers not only consume but also creatively re-produce cultural products, actively participating in the reshaping of ACG culture. This dynamic is visible in the cross-gender interpretations of popular characters like Venti and Klee at events like the 2021 China International Cartoon & Game Expo. Further, the commercialization of gender performance—especially through the phenomenon of Weiniang—reflects broader shifts in cultural values. Drawing on Chao (2017) and supported by observations from Cao and Yang (2025) and Yin and Fung (2017), the paper shows that companies like miHoYo and Bilibili have turned subcultural practices into mainstream economic successes, signaling growing societal acceptance of nontraditional masculinity and gender expression. Overall, cosplay emerges as a vibrant medium that not only entertains but also challenges, redefines, and expands notions of gender, identity, and cultural participation across contemporary East Asian societies.

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