King of Fighters series
- Developer: SNK
- Publisher: SNK
- Year: 1994 – 2016
- Genre: Fighter
- Platform/s: Various
Benimaru has been in the King of Fighters series since the original title. He is a model as well as a fighter, and his sexuality has been debated, with speculation that he is gay. His sexuality has not been canonically confirmed, but the official King of Fighters site says 'His speech patterns have led some to question Benimaru’s preferences as far as certain lifestyles are concerned. All we have to say is: It’s not what you think. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that)'.
King of Fighters also features King, a woman fighter who originally disguised herself as a man to participate in a gender restricted Muay Thai tournament. When her gender was revealed in the tournament's finale, the tournament was cancelled. Because of this outcome, King decided to continue wearing her disguise in other games and has dialogue lines about how her gender / physicality doesn't influence how strong she is.