A character whose motivation is public approval and praise — he lives solely to bask in the adulation of the cheering spectators, to hear the roaring applause rise up as he performs. More often than not a (former) prizefighter or another competition sport persona, or a musician.
In a world where Gladiator Games are a preferred form of entertainment, the Crowd Pleaser will find his adoring crowds much more easily in the Thunderdome or any fighting tournament, as they thrive under the deafening roars rising from the spectators. Fighting a Crowd Pleaser may be signing up for a Death of a Thousand Cuts, as they'll be more likely to draw blood and prolong a battle to get the crowd worked up for the eventual kill with their signature style, prompting the crowd's approval to Finish Him!
Villainous characters exhibiting this trope may be The Fighting Narcissist, prone to Trash Talk their opponents, especially in the show-sport of pro wrestling.
Examples:
- Scott Pilgrim: Gideon, who takes his pride too far.
- Spinner from Death to Smoochy is a retired boxer Manchild who suffered brain damage during his career. He tells Sheldon about his boxing career and how he loved the crowds cheering around him.
- Drunken Master II: Wong Fei-hung is subject of a derogatory remark that his Drunken Boxing exists solely as a show-off martial arts style geared for crowd pleasers who can't do proper martial arts. He proceeds to prove the might of his Confusion Fu in the subsequent fight. Funnily inverted later, when Fei-hung's stepmother is subject to an attempted robbery and he steps in, prompting his stepmother to announce that there's going to be an exhibition match showing off the Drunken Boxing style.
- Gladiator: Proximo, now a lanista with his own gladiator school, was originally a gladiator himself. As he recalls it, nothing could ever compare to the thrill of slaying an opponent and basking in the applause of 50,000 spectators. He tells Maximus that if he wants to stand before the emperor, he will have to learn to do as he did:
"I wasn't the best because I killed quickly; I was the best because the crowd loved me. Win the crowd, and you'll win your freedom."
- That Irresistible Poison: Seyn attends a lot of parties, travels to other planets, and enjoys the praise and attention from his admirers.
- Pokémon Sword and Shield has an interesting variation with Raihan, the Dragon-type Gym Leader of the Galar region. Despite the Gym Challenge being a major spectator sport, he doesn't do much to address the live crowd, but his Rotom Phone is constantly flying around him with the camera on, and his Dynamax animation has him pose with the Max'd ball for a photo, indicating he's an internet crowd pleaser.
- Beowulf from Skullgirls, at least before the beginning of his story mode.
