I definitely blame Disney movies for my unrealistic expectations of love, and just when I thought I moved past dreaming about animated princes, one Instagram user has drawn me back in. Cosmopolitan reports that cosplayer Jonathan Stryker kept busy earlier this month by dressing up as the leading men from everyone’s favorite Disney flicks. Spoiler alert: Disney princes are still hot in real life.
Stryker organized a “Disney Week” on his Instagram account, strykerkun, posting pictures of himself in Disney prince costumes for seven straight days. Although he featured some classic favorites like Aladdin and Prince Eric, he also dressed as some unlikely hunks, like Milo from Atlantis: The Lost Empire (my love for nerdy guys definitely traces back to Milo, tbh).
In an interview with BuzzFeed that he shared via Instagram, the veteran cosplayer explained how his interest in dressing as the Disney princes grew. "I see a lot of princesses but not many princes," he said. "I don't know why guys are so scared of the princes and they were, like, our childhood heroes."
22-year-old Stryker takes a completely DIY approach to his looks, making costumes from scratch and doing his own makeup in a process that can take up to 20 hours. Promoting body positivity in his finished products is also important to him, as he struggled with his weight in the past.
Also dressing as Tangled's Flynn Rider, The Emperor's New Groove's Kuzco and The Lion King's Simba, Stryker used his Hercules photo shoot as an opportunity to share how the animated character helped him deal with his own insecurities.
"Something I really loved about Hercules was the scene when Zeus tells Hercules that he has the chin of a God," Stryker explained. "In middle school, this kid would make fun of my big chin. I became very insecure about it for much of my life. Thanks to Hercules, I now see it differently: I have the chin of the Gods!"
Although his Disney week is over, visiting Stryker's Instagram to see his current cosplay looks is totally worth it. Props to him for reminding us that the Disney men deserve a lot of love too!