If you’re anything like us, every time you add a Funko Pop to your collection, you take a step back and think quietly to yourself “I might have too many.” Then, much like a college kid with a hangover, you swear “never again,” knowing in the back of your mind you will most likely fail to live up to that promise.
After some time, you see another one that’s just too cool to pass up. You rationalize it, buy it, and the cycle starts all over again.
But if you ever beat yourself up for having too many Funko Pops, you can always take a look at David Mebane from Knoxville, Tennessee. His collection has over 7,000 Pops, and growing! Keep reading to hear David’s story and discover the world’s largest Funko Pop collection.
Toys to Pops
David had been collecting toys all his life and then, in 2014, he started collecting Funko Pops. That just so happens to be the year the Funko company introduced the toy that would become a cultural phenomenon. David was an early adopter, it seems.
That could explain why he was able to get a jump-start on collecting and why his collection eventually earned him a Guinness World Record. He explains that he is a big horror fan, stating that Jaws is his favorite film of all time.
Apparently, his horror fandom was what helped him dive head-first into the Funko Pop collecting world. His first Pop was Jason Voorhees; and after getting that one, he was off to the races.
Mebane claims going from collecting toys to collecting Pops was a natural transition, and we can see that. Funkos are, in themselves, toys, but somehow more collectible. We have a theory that the secret lies in motion, or lack thereof. Most toys are created with playtime in mind.
They can move, allowing kids to recreate their favorite scenes from TV, movies, or games. Funko Pops are designed to be displayed. They are stationary and, for the most part, static (other than a bobbling head).
The design is essentially toy meets sculpture, and, as such, most are frozen in a moment of time. This creates the opportunity for more figures, as it’s no longer just characters in their costumes from a specific movie. Funko Pops can recreate various moments from pop culture in a frame-by-frame way.
World Record Collection
By 2021, David Mebane had been collecting for so long that he captured the Guinness Book of World Records title for the biggest collection of Funko Pops. The complete set of the band members of KISS was among the last batch that set him over the top.
He buys somewhere between 20 and 30 Pops a week and, while most are the standard 4”, he does have a bit of variety.
Tall Funko Pops
David also has some of the 18” Pops, which are four and a half times the size of a standard Pop. 18” are much rarer than their 4” counterparts. In addition to the 4 and 18″ figures, Funko makes 10″ bobbleheads.
- Almost 5 times larger than a normal-sized Pop!
- Weighs 10.85 pounds
- Vinyl
They don’t make large Pops for every character or every property. Sometimes, they limit the manufacturing of large Pops to extremely popular characters, such as Harry Potter.
- 18" Funko Mega POP! figure
- Celebrates the 80th anniversary of Batman
- Weighs more than 10 pounds!
- Released in 2000
Sometimes, they might make large Pops to commemorate an anniversary or special occasion, like the 80th anniversary of Batman. And, other times, they just create large Pops for fun, like this Babu Frik.
Pop Rides
- Bond driving his classic Aston Martin
- POPS! Rides #44
- Around 5 inches tall
- 2018 Funko release
The Delorian, Ecto 1, The Flying Ford… sometimes, a car is just as much a character in the story as the people. Funko recognized this fact and created a line of Pops that celebrate the rides that have become a huge part of our pop cultural Zeitgeist.
- Approximately 5.3 inches tall
- Vinyl
- Batman flying the Batwing from the shadows
David Membane showed off his Tony Montana Ride Pop, but you can also find some cool ones, such as James Bond with his iconic Aston Martin, Batman in the Batwing, or our personal favorite: Harry, Ron, and Hermoine riding the Gringotts Dragon.
- Approximately 5 inches tall
- Comes in a window box display
- Vinyl figure
Pop Movies
More than just figurines, Pop creates little vignettes of iconic scenes from our favorite silver screen moments. For example, David Mebane has a Pop from Jaws that portrays the moment Quint is being eaten by Bruce the shark.
- Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi
- Portrays the duel in the Emperor’s throne room aboard the second Death Star
- Approximately 6.25 inches tall
But Funko has also recreated key moments from other beloved franchises, such as Star Wars, Harry Potter, Jurassic Park, Marvel, and many many more, including David’s favorite genre: horror. Our personal favorite is the moment in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi when Luke Skywalker faces off with Darth Vader.
Funko Soda
David’s collection also includes a few pieces from the Funko Soda collection. This line of figures is a bit taller (4.25 inches vs 3.75 inches) than the standard Pops, but they are also a bit thinner. The coolest thing about this line is its namesake.
Every figure comes in its own nifty little soda can which makes them even more collectable. The Funko Soda line doesn’t have as many options as the Pop line, but they cover a little bit of everything.
You can find the most iconic characters from pop culture, such as Superman, fan-favorite characters that may be a little more obscure like Agatha Harkness, and even famous characters from advertising like the Lucky Charms Leprechaun.
- 4.25" figure
- 1 in 6 chance of receiving a limited edition Chase variant
- Weighs 4 ounces
Largest Funko Pop Collection: Valuable Pops
Not all of David’s pieces are strictly things anyone could buy off the shelf. As you can imagine, Mebane has collected a few pieces that are unique, many of which are worth a pretty penny. When people talk about Funko Pops as an investment, these are the kinds of pieces they are talking about.
Not your average, run-of-the-mill, mass-produced 4” Funko you can buy anywhere. The crown jewels found in serious collections such as David’s are rare, and often times limited editions. Their uniqueness can make collectors covet the little bobbleheads and drive the prices up to unimaginable levels.
Signed Pops
To add a more personal touch to his collection, David has 126 Funko Pops signed by the actors who have played the character the Pop figurine is representing. As a horror fan, one of his pride and joys is a Jason Voorhees Pop signed by Steve Dash, who portrayed the legendary masked killer in Friday the 13th Part 2.
David takes a certain level of pride in that one. It’s his favorite horror character, signed by one of the many that donned the mask and machete. He also has a Billy from Saw, signed by the actor who played Jigsaw‘s Tobin Bell.
The Billy Pop is not only valuable because of the signature, but it’s also extremely rare. Only 4,500 were made, making this a very coveted horror Pop.
Rare Pops
Rare Pops can have a steep price tag and David’s collection has its fair share of valuable pieces. Recently, he showed off his Bank Robber Joker from the bank heist scene in 2008’s The Dark Knight. This iconic scene was captured in Funko form in 2014, and then discontinued.
Now, the extremely rare Pop sells at various cons, websites, and retailers for hundreds of dollars. No wonder David singled it out as one of the jewels of his collection. His rarest and most valuable Pop, however, is his White Lady from 2015. An import from Tokyo, this Pop is part of the Asia line and portrays a ghostly creature from Asian myths and legends.
Chase Variants
Chase variants are a cool idea that Funko introduced as a way to add a little variety to its Pop line. Basically, Funko will make certain Pops with small variations. Maybe the character is holding a different item or wearing a slightly different article of clothing. Either way, there are basically multiple versions (variants) of the same Pop manufactured.
Typically, when Funko creates a chase, they do 6 versions. Customers will order the Pop and Funko will mail them one of the variants at random. So, if a Pop is a chase variant, the customer has a 1 in 6 chance of getting the one they want, and ordering multiple Pops doesn’t necessarily mean you will get different variants.
That was why the public dubbed them “chase” variants. Because collectors would find themselves going to different retailers and third-party sellers “chasing” the variant that they needed. Needless to say, certain variants may be more coveted than others, which drives up the cost.
Largest Funko Pop Collection: Conclusion
David Mebane currently holds the record for the largest collection of Funko Pops according to the Guinness World Book of Records. At 7,095 pieces and growing, David has been building his collection for nearly a decade now (having started in 2014) and has no intention of slowing down.
David had been an avid toy collector for many years and transitioned into collecting Funko Pops partly thanks to Tall Man Toys & Comics. The Knoxville, Tennessee, retailer is the largest distributor of Funko Pops in the Southeast.
As a resident of Knoxville, David has access to this incredible resource. So, if you are looking to pass his record, you better find a secret weapon of your own.
- Funko Pop! Friday the 13th: Jason Voorhees
- Horror: Friday the 13th theme
- Vinyl
- Weighs 4 ounces
- Funko Pop! 18-Inch Harry Potter with Hedwig
- Almost 5 times larger than a normal-sized Pop!
- Weighs 10.85 pounds
- Vinyl
- Funko Pop! Star Wars: 10" Babu Frik
- Weighs 3.49 ounces
- Vinyl
- 10 inches in height
- Funko Pop! Batman in Batwing
- Approximately 5.3 inches tall
- Vinyl
- Batman flying the Batwing from the shadows
- Funko Pop! Rides: Gringotts Dragon
- Approximately 5 inches tall
- Comes in a window box display
- Vinyl figure
- Funko Pop! Moment: Darth Vader vs. Luke Skywalker
- Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi
- Portrays the duel in the Emperor’s throne room aboard the second Death Star
- Approximately 6.25 inches tall
- Funko Soda: Agatha Harkness
- Limited to 12,500 pieces
- The figure comes in a pop can
- Movie theme
- Funko Soda: General Mills Lucky Leprechaun
- 4.25" figure
- 1 in 6 chance of receiving a limited edition Chase variant
- Weighs 4 ounces
- Funko Pop! Heroes: The Joker Bank Robber
- 3.75 inches tall
- Vinyl
- Weighs 3.52 ounces
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The image featured at the top of this post is ©Ric Caliolio Jr/Shutterstock.com.
