The trouble with ‘Bros’

Hollywood and identity politics really is a toxic mix. Awards shows are dominated by hectoring actors. Popcorn fluff must now ‘send a message’. Concerns about representation apparently obsess casting directors. And a film being on-message is often prized over it being any good. Lazy recycled stories and reboots are given a ‘diverse’ gloss. We’re obliged to hail an all-female Ocean’s 11 or Ghostbusters reboot as some breakthrough for womankind, rather than another sign that Tinseltown is completely devoid of new ideas.

But this obsession certainly has its uses for Hollywood bigwigs, as the confected controversy over the new movie Bros makes clear. Bros is a gay romcom directed by Nicholas Stoller, who co-wrote the screenplay with the film’s star, Billy Eichner. It is being promoted as the first film of its kind to get big-studio backing. The critics, we’re told, love it. The only hitch is that the initial box-office reception has been tepid.