Exploring the appeal of villainous characters in film-induced tourism: perceived charismatic leadership and justice sensitivity

The study addresses how villainous characters in films/TV with perceived charismatic leadership can enhance destination attractiveness via emotional contagion and place attachment, ultimately shaping visit intention. In a post-pandemic context of proliferating streaming platforms that globalize screen content, films can deepen emotional connections to places through stories and characters. However, most film-induced tourism research focuses on decent characters, overlooking the potential appeal of villains. The study identifies gaps: lack of empirical evidence that villains’ charismatic leadership induces emotional contagion; limited understanding of how justice sensitivity shapes audiences’ emotions toward evil characters; and insufficient comparison of distinct emotions (pleasure, arousal, admiration) on place attachment and visit intention. Guided by emotional contagion theory and the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) framework, the purposes are: (a) determine how perceived charismatic leadership (stimulus) of a villain affects emotions; (b) test whether justice sensitivity moderates these emotions; (c) compare how pleasure, arousal, and admiration influence place attachment (psychological response) and visit intention (behavioral response); and (d) offer recommendations for filmmakers and tourism marketers.

Film-induced tourism and streaming platforms: Film tourism enhances destination image and value, with screen content becoming icons for destinations. Distribution barriers have eased with streaming, amplifying social media dissemination and shifting attention to characters and narratives that spread easily. Character-based mascots, AR features, and story-linked sharing drive engagement. Perceived charismatic leadership: Originating in organizational behavior, charisma includes vision articulation, personal risk, environmental sensitivity, follower sensitivity, and unconventional behavior. Film narratives apply charismatic leadership to both heroes and villains, with character arcs creating multidimensional antagonists (e.g., The Godfather, Joker, anti-heroes like Walter White). Viewers’ perceptions of fictional charisma can influence real attitudes and behaviors and extend fascination to filming locations, yet empirical links to tourism behavior remain scarce. Emotion contagion theory: Emotions spread via mimicry and synchrony; modern mass media, including film/TV, trigger emotional contagion at scale. Characters are key emotional sources; character-driven emotions affect tourists’ behaviors in film tourism. Prior work identifies various character features as motivators, but personality traits tied to narrative (e.g., villain charisma) are underexplored. Pleasure, arousal, admiration: Emotions are central to entertainment and, in SOR terms, influence purchase/visit intentions. Pleasure (happiness/relaxation), arousal (excitement/intensity), and admiration (response to extraordinary skill) have been linked to film tourism behaviors. Hypotheses posit perceived charismatic leadership increases each emotion (H1–H3). Place attachment: Emotional bonds to places (place identity and place dependence) can form pre-visit via media. Emotions from screen experiences can transfer to attachment and then to behavior. Hypotheses propose pleasure, arousal, and admiration each positively affect place identity/dependence (H4–H9). Visit intention: Defined as likelihood of future travel, especially first-time visits in film tourism contexts. Emotions and place attachment are expected to drive visit intention (H10–H14). Reception aesthetics and justice sensitivity: Audiences decode texts through personal horizons of expectation. Justice sensitivity—concern for and reactivity to injustice—should shape emotional responses to villain charisma, hypothesized to negatively moderate the charisma-to-emotion links (H15–H17). The full theoretical model integrates these constructs under SOR.

Study setting: The Knockout (狂飙), a 2023 Chinese police/crime TV drama filmed in Jiangmen, Guangdong, spurred a surge in tourism to filming sites, especially locations linked to the villain Gao Qiqiang. Social media content and a local VR live-action map amplified interest. This context is used to examine how perceived charismatic leadership of a villain affects emotions, place attachment, and visit intention. Design and measures: A self-administered online questionnaire used 7-point Likert scales (1=strongly disagree, 7=strongly agree). Perceived charismatic leadership (Conger et al., 2000) included five dimensions: strategic vision and articulation (7 items), personal risk (3), sensitivity to environment (4), sensitivity to member needs (3), and unconventional behavior (3). Emotions (Meng et al., 2021): pleasure (4 items), arousal (3), admiration (4). Place attachment (Hosany et al., 2019): place identity (5), place dependence (4). Visit intention (Han et al., 2010): 3 items. Justice sensitivity (Sabbagh, 2021): 6 items. Back-translation ensured linguistic accuracy; items were context-adapted. Pilot test (n=50) indicated clarity. Sampling and data collection: Online panel in China (≈4 million members) recruited respondents from April 1–25, 2023. Inclusion: watched The Knockout; never visited Jiangmen. To reduce common method bias (CMB), item order was randomized. Responses under 3.5 minutes (minimum validated completion time) were excluded. Of 550 collected, 532 valid responses remained. Demographics: 66.17% female; 61.28% aged 36–45; 95.86% with diploma or higher; majority resided outside Guangdong (79.89%). CMB assessment: Harman’s one-factor test showed 30.36% variance (<50%); full collinearity VIFs 1.042–2.902 (<3.3), suggesting CMB not a concern. Analysis: Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with two-stage approach for the higher-order charisma construct. Sample size met the ten-times rule (min 490). Reliability and validity: First-order constructs showed Cronbach’s α 0.706–0.936; composite reliability 0.836–0.954; loadings 0.715–0.952; AVE 0.584–0.856. Second-order charisma loadings >0.7; α=0.873; CR=0.908; AVE=0.664. Discriminant validity met Fornell-Larcker and HTMT (<0.85). Structural model adequacy: R²=0.103–0.594; Q²=0.414–0.581. Significance tested via bootstrapping (5,000 resamples). Moderation tested via interaction terms; simple slopes plotted. Indirect effects (mediation) assessed via bootstrapping.

• Perceived charismatic leadership significantly increased all three emotions: pleasure (β=0.341, t=6.966, p<0.001; H1 supported), arousal (β=0.373, t=7.809, p<0.001; H2), and admiration (β=0.470, t=10.587, p<0.001; H3). The strongest effect was on admiration.
• Emotions → place attachment: • Pleasure → place dependence: positive (β=0.227, t=4.768, p<0.001; H4). Pleasure → place identity: not significant (β=0.110, t=1.803, p=0.071; H5 rejected). • Arousal → place dependence: positive (β=0.246, t=5.333, p<0.001; H6); arousal → place identity: positive (β=0.185, t=3.218, p=0.001; H7). • Admiration → place dependence: positive (β=0.141, t=2.795, p=0.005; H8); admiration → place identity: positive (β=0.404, t=7.685, p<0.001; H9).
• Visit intention drivers: Direct effects of pleasure (β=−0.060, t=1.473, p=0.141; H10 rejected) and admiration (β=0.004, t=0.091, p=0.928; H12 rejected) were not significant. Arousal had a significant positive direct effect (β=0.158, t=3.898, p<0.001; H11). Place dependence (β=0.510, t=10.841, p<0.001; H13) and place identity (β=0.241, t=4.645, p<0.001; H14) significantly predicted visit intention.
• Moderation by justice sensitivity: Justice sensitivity negatively moderated the charisma→emotion links: pleasure (β=−0.114, t=2.856, p=0.004; H15), arousal (β=−0.143, t=4.042, p<0.001; H16), admiration (β=−0.112, t=2.880, p=0.004; H17).
• Mediation (indirect paths): • Charisma → pleasure → place dependence → visit intention significant (IP2: β=0.039, t=3.431, p=0.001). Pleasure’s non-significant direct path to visit intention coupled with significant mediation indicates full mediation via place dependence. • Charisma → arousal → visit intention (IP4: β=0.059, t=3.432, p=0.001) and via place dependence/identity (IP5: β=0.047, t=4.118, p<0.001; IP6: β=0.017, t=2.352, p=0.019) were significant. • Charisma → admiration → place dependence/identity → visit intention significant (IP8: β=0.034, t=2.664, p=0.008; IP9: β=0.046, t=3.562, p<0.001), while the direct admiration → visit intention path was not (IP7 rejected), indicating full mediation via place attachment.
• Model adequacy: R² values—Pleasure 0.103; Arousal 0.170; Admiration 0.218; Place dependence 0.271; Place identity 0.364; Visit intention 0.594. Q² values 0.414–0.581 indicated predictive relevance.

Findings empirically demonstrate that villainous characters’ perceived charismatic leadership triggers emotional contagion among audiences, especially admiration, aligning with narrative theories of charismatic antagonists. These emotions translate into place attachment, which, alongside arousal, drives intentions to visit filming locations. Pleasure enhances functional attachment (place dependence) but not identity, while admiration bolsters both identity and dependence—highlighting nuanced emotional pathways. Visit intention is primarily propelled by arousal and by both dimensions of place attachment, clarifying the SOR chain from stimulus (charisma) to organism (emotions, attachment) to response (visit intention). Justice sensitivity tempers positive emotional reactions to villain charisma, evidencing that audience values shape reception and attenuate contagion. The study advances cross-disciplinary theory by linking film characterisation (character arc and charismatic leadership) with emotional contagion and tourism behavior, and underscores the importance of considering audience justice orientations when leveraging villain characters for destination marketing.

This study shows that villainous characters exhibiting charismatic leadership can catalyze film-induced tourism by evoking pleasure, arousal, and admiration, which foster place attachment and, in turn, visit intention. Arousal and both facets of place attachment are direct drivers of visit intention; pleasure and admiration act indirectly through attachment. Justice sensitivity weakens charisma’s emotional impact, emphasizing the role of audience values in narrative reception and marketing outcomes. Contributions include empirically validating the role of perceived charismatic leadership of fictional villains in the SOR process, extending reception aesthetics with justice sensitivity effects, and enriching push-pull perspectives by identifying narrative-based pull factors. Practically, destination marketers and DMOs can spotlight locations tied to villain charisma in campaigns, monitor social media sentiment, and tailor strategies to audience value profiles; screenwriters can craft villain arcs that clearly exhibit charismatic leadership to heighten audience engagement. Future research should examine cross-cultural generalizability, different media genres (e.g., documentaries, comedies, animation, games), and compare non-visitors with visitors to assess post-visit behavioral dynamics.

• Cultural and contextual scope: Measures and context are based on a Chinese TV drama and Chinese audiences; results may not generalize to other cultures or markets.
• Genre specificity: Focus on a police/crime drama villain may not extend to other genres or media forms.
• Sample composition: Predominantly non-visitors; findings may differ for those with prior on-site experience.
• Future directions: Cross-cultural comparisons, diverse media types (documentaries, comedies, cartoons, games), inclusion of actual visitors, and deeper integration of character/storyline factors into push-pull models.