Following last week’s announcement that Netflix will stream the U.S. Princess Diana musical ahead to its Broadway opening it’s been confirmed that Ryan Murphy's THE BOYS IN THE BAND film, based on the Mart Crowley play, will be available on the streaming service from September 30.
The original play THE BOYS IN THE BAND was truly ground breaking in 1968 when it was the first production to be about gay men at a time when many in society thought homosexuality was unacceptable. The piece, and the later film version, certainly helped the gay community feel more visible even if there’s a self-hating queer man at its centre and by the end his future looks pretty bleak.
There was a star studded Broadway revival in 2018 and it’s this staging and cast that will form the basis of the film, including leading man Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory).
Also appearing are Matt Bomer (White Collar), Zachary Quinto (Heroes), Andrew Rannells (Girls), Charlie Carver (Teen Wolf), Brian Hutchison (Madam Secretary), Michael Benjamin Washington (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt), Robin de Jesús (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), and Tuc Watkins (Desperate Housewives).
The revival’s PR describes the plot as centring on “a group of gay men who gather in a NYC apartment for a friend's birthday party. After the drinks are poured and the music turned up, the evening slowly exposes the fault-lines beneath their friendships and the self-inflicted heartache that threatens their solidarity.”
The film is produced by Ryan Murphy p.g.a., David Stone, Joe Mantello p.g.a., Ned Martel, and Alexis Martin Woodall.
The streaming service Netflix have barely missed a trick over the past few years in positioning themselves as giants of the entertainment industry.