Billy Eichner has shared his thoughts on the meager theatrical release of his LGBTQ romantic comedy Bros, writing that “straight people, especially in certain parts of the country, just haven’t been showing up.”
In a thread posted to his official Twitter, Eichner, who wrote, produced and starred in “Bros,” said he was “very proud” of the film and described his experience of secretly watching over the weekend saw a sold out screening in Los Angeles.
“Last night I snuck in and sat in the back of a sold out theater to play ‘Bros’ in LA. The audience roared with laughter from start to finish, bursting into applause at the end and some wiping their tears as they walked out,” Eichner wrote. “It was really magical. For real. I am VERY proud of this film.”
Last night I snuck in and sat in the back of a sold out theater to play BROS in LA. The audience roared with laughter from start to finish, bursting into applause at the end and some wiping tears as they walked out. It was really magical. For real. I am VERY proud of this film.
— billy eichner (@billyeichner) October 2, 2022
The star also revealed that a theater chain had plans to remove the Bros trailer from its schedule due to “gay content,” but Universal eventually persuaded the company to keep its placement in the pre-show rotation. “America, fuck yeah,” wrote Eichner.
“Unfortunately, that’s the world we live in,” Eichner continued. “Even with rave reviews, great Rotten Tomatoes scores, an A CinemaScore, etc. straight people, especially in certain parts of the country, just haven’t turned up to Bros. And that’s disappointing, but it is what it is.”
Eichner concluded his thoughts by encouraging “anyone who isn’t a homophobic nutcase” to watch “Bros,” writing that seeing this special story on a big screen “remains special and uniquely powerful.”
Bros is the first gay rom-com to be released by a major studio and the first with an openly LGBTQ cast.
The film fizzled at the box office this weekend, opening in fourth place with gross gross of $4.8 million from 3,350 locations. Although “Bros” has a modest production budget of $22 million, it will likely be difficult to achieve profitability given its disappointing debut.
Despite this, “Bros” has received rave reviews from critics, and audience polls remain strong. Universal hopes word of mouth will give the film some staying power in the coming weeks.