What's 'Goncharov' (1973)? Viral Unreality Fandom From Tumblr Explained

Within a span of few days, Tumblr fabricated an entire fandom about a 1973 mafia movie by Martin Scorcese about a Russian-born mafia boss named Goncharov, rich with drama and homoerotic undertones. How did the charismatic Russian mafioso win over Tumblr? Read all about what Goncharov is and what it's all about in our brief explainer.

What Is Goncharov (1973)?

Goncharov is supposed to be a 1973 crime drama movie directed by Martin Scorsese about a Russian-born mafia boss named of Goncharov living in Naples. The film apparently follows Goncharov's crime career amid his personal conflicts with his estranged wife Katya, his friend Andrey Daddano and other characters. The main twist is that, despite having a poster, a plot, movie GIFs, a soundtrack and tons of fan art, Goncharov does not actually exist.

Instead, the "film" represents the effort of Tumblr users who, inspired by a shoe tag of all things, have collectively decided that this previously unknown Martin Scorsese masterpiece should not only become a thing, but also have a massive fandom surrounding it.

Which answers the question: does a fandom actually need the actual media it's supposed to surround to exist? Apparently no.

Where Does Gocnahrov Come From?

The story of Goncharov, the "greatest mafia movie (n)ever made," starts with a photograph of a knockoff boot posted by Tumblr user zootycoon sometime before August 22nd, 2020. On the photograph, a label is clearly visible. Instead of having a brand name on it, the label displays a brief description of Goncharov, a movie supposedly directed by Domenico Procacci and presented by Martin Scorcese. As it was later discovered, the label almost entirely copies the poster design for the 2008 film Gomorrah directed by Procacci, which had Scorcese's name attached to it for promotional purposes.

Tumblr user losermo then replied to the post with another user's comment reading, "this idiot hasn't seen goncharov," and it was how it originally went viral. Despite this, the post remained a sleeper hit well until October 2022, when Tumblr user dobsuffrage took it upon themselves to investigate the origins of the label, discovering the Gomorrah poster. And then, after on November 18th, Tumblr user beelzebub posted a fan-made (but of Scorsese-worthy-quality) poster for the film, the Goncharov fandom took over Tumblr in a matter of days.

Who Are The Main Characters In Goncharov?

If you want to learn more about Goncharov, Andrey, Katya and other Goncharov characters , you should definitely read this master post which perfectly summarizes the fan fiction written so far.

Was Goncharov a Real Person?

Unless you're talking about Russian novelist Ivan Goncharov, then no, there was no Russian-born mafiosi by that name. Even more so, Goncharov isn't even a real movie character (so far).

For the full history of Goncharov be sure to check out our entry for more information.