Listen to the stories featuring the most iconic characters in sci-fi and fantasy

Cosplay is the art of dressing up as characters from movies, video games, comics, anime and novels. In the last decade, it’s gone from something only a handful of hardcore fans would do at conventions to a budding movement led by costume designers, makeup artists, models and photographers with a passion for all things nerd.

An important part of that growth has been the popularity of cosplay online. Instagram is a major platform where artists and photographers show off their work. You can also find videos where cosplayers show their audiences the making of their incredible costumes. Successful cosplayers have hundreds of thousands of followers, and the online cosplay world has been busy.

Since so many characters recreated by cosplayers come from , we wanted to take a look at some of the most iconic characters in sci-fi and beyond, and ways for you to find out more about them.

Takeshi Kovacs

is a hard-boiled noir set in a cyberpunk future, where those who can afford it have their consciousness downloaded into a new body (or as it’s called in the series, “sleeve”), effectively living forever. Takeshi Kovacs is the several-hundred-year-old protagonist who’s no stranger to trying out new sleeves. No fewer than six actors of varying backgrounds have played Kovacs on the TV series.

What makes Takeshi Kovacs costumes stand out? The pink Hello Unicorn backpack Takeshi uses to store his weapons. Throughout the TV series Takeshi never switches his bag, whatever else he looks like, making it an iconic prop for fans of Altered Carbon.

Doctor Who

With a history going back to 1963, The Doctor is an icon of both science fiction and British pop culture. Over thirteen actors have played various incarnations of Doctor Who, each with their own unique look and take on the beloved character. At just about any convention, you’re bound to see one of them, whether it’s the long-scarfed Fourth Doctor from the ’70s look or the bow-tied Eleventh.

Sci-fi is often associated with dystopian futures and heavy-handed analogies. But there’s a that’s funny, light-hearted and still explores classic sci-fi themes. Doctor Who is a series that’s inspired multiple spin-offs, including a series of audio dramas. Check out for seven Doctor Who stories written specifically for audio, narrated by the Tenth Doctor himself, David Tennant.

With so many different Doctors and iconic looks to choose from, it’s no wonder that the Doctor is a standard appearance at conventions around the world.

Pris

There are a lot of iconic looks from , originally published as by Philip K. Dick. Ridley Scott’s 1982 film adaptation gave the world a vision of what grizzled Rick Deckard, femme fatale Rachael and the rugged Roy Batty looked like. However, none of them are as popular in the cosplay world as the acrobatic replicant named Pris, played in the film by Daryl Hannah.