What Are Crack Ships? A Guide to The Fanfic Trope

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Slang expert Tobi Nwodo explains what a crackship is & shares the most infamous examples

Co-authored by Tobi Nwodo and Glenn Carreau

Last Updated: May 8, 2026 Fact Checked

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• What are crackships?
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• Crackship Examples
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• Crackship vs. Cross Ship
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• Crackship vs. Rarepair
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• Video

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If you know about “shipping,” you’ve already dipped a toe into fandom culture—but what about specific types of ships, particularly wild and whimsical “crackships”? Well, “crackships” are a type of romantic pairing between characters; specifically, they’re impossible or ridiculous pairings—sometimes more about humor than real romance. In this article, we partnered with a slang expert to explain exactly what a crack ship is, and what it isn’t (compared to other types of fandom ships). We’ll also explore several popular crackships in more detail, from the wishful to the downright absurd!

An Overview of “Crack Ships” in Fandoms

Slang expert Tobi Nwodo says a crackship is a bizarre ship between 2 characters who rarely interact or have never interacted. They're often meant to be funny rather than serious, created for sheer absurdity or as a creative challenge. Examples include Elsa/Jack Frost, Johnny Bravo/Samurai Jack, and Draco Malfoy/Apple.

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Section 1 of 4:

What are crackships?

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   A “crackship” (or “crack ship”) is any bizarre or highly unlikely pairing. In the fandom world, a “ship” is a relationship between two characters, and there are many different types of ships, with “crack ship” being among the most ridiculous. Crack ships can be silly and even downright disturbing—or, in other cases, they may just be so unlikely that fans don’t take the possibility of them becoming canon seriously, even if it’d actually be a cool relationship.

   • A crackship might be between two characters who rarely interact, or are from different shows and have never interacted with each other, explains Nwodo. They might have bad chemistry or aren’t even the same species (one might even be an inanimate object!).
   • The term “crackship” is a combination of “crack” + “ship,” with crack being a reference to crack cocaine and the fact that users tend to behave strangely or erratically when under the influence.

   Meet the wikiHow Expert

   Tobi Nwodo, aka Hyperstrides, is a meme and slang expert, with over 9 years of social media experience and over 600,000 followers.
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   Crack ships are often—but not always—considered jokes. Shipping can be a serious business in fandoms, with fans being very devoted to their favorite ships. Crack ships, on the other hand, tend to be less serious; they’re never canon, and more often than not, created as jokes. People posting about especially weird ships are probably just having fun—not seriously hoping that the relationship will happen.

   • Crack ships can still be serious. As we’ve mentioned, sometimes fans just have crack ships that’ll probably never happen (for one reason or another), but that they really enjoy nonetheless.
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Section 2 of 4:

Popular Examples of Crack Ships

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   Elsa/Jack Frost (Jelsa)This was actually a pretty big ship back in the day, even though the two were from different animated movies: Elsa from Frozen and Jack from Rise of the Guardians. The two could never actually meet—but that didn’t stop fans from pairing them up. Both have frost powers and use them (mostly) to help people, yet felt misunderstood at first; so, it’s not hard to see why fans thought they’d make a good couple!

   • Jack Frost has actually been shipped with many animated characters from different movies.
   • For instance, Jack, Merida (from Brave), Rapunzel (from Tangled), and Hiccup (from How to Train Your Dragon) have all been shipped together in various pairings!
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   Wonder Woman/Lara Croft (Wondercroft)This is another example of a crack ship that’ll never happen—but it’d be pretty cool if it did! The “Wondercroft” duo are both iconic characters known for their adventurous personalities. Wonder Woman (DC Comics) is a renowned superhero, while Lara (Tomb Raider) uncovers mystical artifacts and thwarts those who want to exploit them along the way. Together, they’d definitely be a power couple.

   • This pairing became popular after writer Gail Simone posted a prompt on Twitter/X about Lara on a mission to find the fabled golden lasso; in response, artist Stjepan Sejic posted fan art of the duo, and the rest is history.
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   Rapunzel/Mavis Dracula (Mavunzel)Mavunzel is another ship between animated characters—this time Rapunzel from Tangled and Mavis from Hotel Transylvania. The common thread between these characters is their thirst for exploration and discovery; both led sheltered lives before coming of age, and both want to go out into the world and feel “normal.” Fans enjoy the idea of them sneaking off to see the world together!
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   Draco Malfoy/Apple (Drapple)This is a comedy crackship, pure and simple! The idea here is that Draco Malfoy (from the Harry Potter movies) is shown with a green apple multiple times: first in The Prisoner of Azkaban, during Hagrid’s Care of Magical Creatures class, and next in The Half-Blood Prince, while testing the vanishing cabinet. “Drapple” arose as a joke about Draco clearly having a thing for apples.

   • Nwodo names this as one of the most infamous crackships!
   • For a joke, this crackship has definitely gotten traction. There are currently over 100 fics sApple/works tagged “Draco Malfoy/Apple” on Archive of Our Own (a popular website for posting fanfiction).
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   Johnny Bravo/Samurai Jack (Samurai Bravo)Johnny Bravo and Samurai Jack are each the protagonists of their respective TV shows (of the same name) on Cartoon Network. And even though their shows take place in totally different worlds, they have technically interacted in one of Cartoon Network’s bumpers (short animated clips)—which was enough to capture fans’ imaginations.

   • In the “Laundry Day” bumper, they end up at the same laundromat and notice one another while doing laundry (both scantily clad).
   • Jack comments about Johnny’s black shirts, while Johnny notices Jack’s pink cloth, though it ends up being pink because Blossom (of The Powerpuff Girls) left one of her dresses in Jack’s washing machine.
   • CN City’s director, Geoff Valent, has even expressed his support for the Samurai Bravo ship, calling it “brilliant” in an interview.
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   Ryomen Sukuna/Cinderella (Sukunella)This crackship—between Disney’s Cinderella and Jujutsu Kaisen’s Sukuna—is definitely one of the more bizarre (and infamous) examples, notes Nwodo. TikTok user @cloudstrifesimp started making Sukunella posts in 2023, and from there, more social media users began posting about the crackship. It generally involves Sukuna seeing Cinderella at the ball and falling in love with her, with Cinderella possibly helping Sukuna become a better person.

   • Sukunella is a crack ship because they’re from different worlds, and very different characters with almost nothing in common.
   • Cinderella is a sweet-natured young woman who is taken advantage of by her stepfamily, while Sukuna is JJK’s ultimate villain—ruthless, black-hearted, and known as “The King of Curses.”
   • There are plenty of other popular Jujutsu Kaisen ships. While we wouldn’t call Sukunella “popular,” it’s definitely weird enough to be memorable!
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   Grinch/Tony the Tiger (Grony) “Grony” is another bizarre crackship between the Grinch (of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas) and Tony the Tiger (the Frosted Flakes cereal mascot). This ship originated from a 2015 Tumblr post by equalistmako; the post claims “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” reads like a breakup song—and from there, user prokopetz threw out a theory about Tony being the Grinch’s angry ex.

   • The “Grony” crackship is based on the fact that “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” (in the original animated movie) is sung by Thurl Ravenscroft, a voice actor who also provided Tony the Tiger’s voice!
   • And yes, there’s also a popular fix-it fic by Tumblr user biggest-gaudiest-poltergeist in which Tony and the Grinch work out their issues and get back together (which inspired numerous other fan works).
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   Regina George/Rodrick Heffley (Rodrina)The “Rodrina” crackship went viral more recently in 2025, shipping Regina George of Mean Girls with Rodrick Heffley from Diary of a Wimpy Kid. This crackship was inspired by the contrast between the two characters—and the idea that “opposites attract.” Regina is her school’s popular, preppy queen bee, and Rodrick is a rebellious punk-rocker; fans found their chaotic, “pink x black” aesthetic charming.

   • Both characters are antagonists in their respective films, and can be bullies at times—yet there’s more to them underneath that.
   • Avril Lavigne’s early hit, “Sk8er Boi,” is a popular song used in fan edits for the couple, capturing their dynamic as a couple.
   • Nwodo includes this in his list of the most infamous crackship couples!
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   Captain Floor “Captain Floor” is a silly ship pairing Captain Hook, AKA Killian Jones from Once Upon a Time, with the floor—yes, the actual floor. Why? Because he falls down a lot in the show. So, the running joke is to ship him with the floor. This crackship is purely made for the humor, but that hasn’t stopped 9 fanfics from being tagged sFloor/works “Killian Jones/Floor” on Archive of Our Own.
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    Michelangelo/Miles Morales (ShellShocked)The crackship between Michelangelo from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Spider-Man’s Miles Morales is actually pretty wholesome. The two characters are both easygoing, likable, known for being creative and artistic—and, of course, have the whole “heroes given superpowers via contact with radiation” thing in common. Even fans who don’t ship the two romantically agree they’d be friends!
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    Barack Obama/Harry Styles (Hobama)RPF (real-person fiction) is also something fans engage with, telling stories with real people in fictional situations—and, strangely, a popular crackship from the 2010s is Barack Obama and Harry Styles. In 2014, the photoshopped picture of a tabloid cover claiming that then-President Obama had an affair with Harry Styles went viral as a meme, and the “Hobama” crack ship was born.

    • Hobama is mainly a joking ship, and people who engage with it make memes, jokes, and goofy photo edits or fake “proof” posts about it.
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    Anyone/The Giant SquidThis might (depending on who you ask) be the most ridiculous and disturbing crackship on the list. In the Harry Potter series, mainly the books, a giant squid notoriously lives in the lake outside Hogwarts. And some fans find it funny to ship the giant squid with various other characters—everyone from Harry himself to Hogwarts Castle!

    • Given how many characters there are, it shouldn’t be surprising that the Harry Potter fandom is full of crackships.
    • Other examples include Dolores Umbridge x Centaurs, Snape x Devil’s Snare, Drapple (of course), and Dobby x Harry’s Sock.
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    Barbie/Oppenheimer (Barbenheimer)The “Barbenheimer” phenomenon of 2023 arose when the two movies—Barbie and Oppenheimer—both released on July 21. People made memes and fan art, and came up with the popular “double” feature experience of seeing one movie right after the other. And that phenomenon also gave rise to the Barbenheimer crackship, shipping Barbie with J. Robert Oppenheimer.

    • Of course, this crackship was established purely because of the connection between movies (not because of any real-life connections between the Barbie doll and J. Robert Oppenheimer).
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Section 3 of 4:

What’s the difference between Crackship & Cross Ship?

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1. 
   Crossover ships pair up characters from different universes. So technically, a ship can be both, since a lot of crackship pairings do come from different universes. However, crossover ships are between characters who’ve never interacted because they’re from separate franchises. In contrast, crackships are specifically pairings considered bizarre or impossible (regardless of whether or not they’re from the same franchise).

   • For instance, Elsa/Jack Frost or Sukuna/Cinderella are both crossover ships and crackships. Conversely, Dean Winchester/Impala isn’t a crossover ship—just a crackship.

Section 4 of 4:

What’s the difference between Crackship & Rarepair?

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1. 
   Rarepairs are unpopular, nontraditional fandom pairings. This is also true of crackships—but while crackships are often meant to be funny or ridiculous, rarepairs are still plausible. That means a rarepair could happen in canon, even if it probably won’t (whereas a crackship is totally random and ridiculous, or concerns characters from different universes). Rarepairs often involve side characters, or characters who don’t share much screen time.

   • For instance, a rarepair might be Pansy Parkinson/Neville Longbottom from Harry Potter, or Dean Winchester/Anna from Supernatural.
   • Fans don’t often ship either pairing, nor do those characters have much canon content together—but those ships do exist (and have a bit of fan-made content here and there).
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