Eminem, inventor of “stans,” is producing a documentary about them

Among Eminem’s various contributions to our cultural lexicon—Mom’s spaghetti, “real” Slim Shadys, an abiding and unshakeable affection for Venom—few are as likely to endure as long as “Stans.” Named for Eminem’s 2000 song/Devon Sawa trivia factoid, the term has come to serve as a blanket label for too-obsessive fans that extends far beyond its initial coinage on The Marshall Mathers LP. (Although few stans, thankfully, go as far as the one from what is, we’re reasonably sure, the single darkest track to ever feature a writing credit from British songstress Dido.)

Now Eminem is dialing into stan culture from an unusual point of view: Co-producing a new documentary, loosely titled, well, Stans, that promises to be a “revealing, edgy, and disarmingly personal journey into the world of superfandom, told through the lens of one of the world’s most iconic and enduring artists, Eminem, and the fans that worship him.” Which does sound like an Eminem project, in so far as it’s clearly, and needlessly, self-aggrandizing toward him, but could also be interesting, provided it actually dials into the obsessions that turn a regular fan into something a bit more disturbing.

Eminem is producing the movie through his Shady Films label, with Steven Leckart serving as director. A press statement from producer Paul Rosenberg (Eminem’s manager) highlights, inadvertently, how weird it is that we’ve all adopted this label for fandom from a song that’s about a murder-suicide fueled in part by obsessive parasocial attachment, noting that the movie aims to “turn the camera around and ask the audience about being fans — and in some cases, fanatics. This is a study of the relationship between fanbase and artist through the lens of one of Eminem’s most fascinating songs and one of the world’s most important entertainers.” (So, yeah: Sounds like it might end up being more of a vanity project about how Eminem fans just love him that much, rather than something more insightful, but we can live in hope.)

[via Variety]