'Bros' flopped because of a bad marketing plan, not homophobia
Debuting a rom-com during horror film season is just one of the missteps made by Universal Pictures and Billy Eichner
Last weekend, Billy Eichner’s LGBTQ romantic comedy Bros debuted in theaters, earning only $4.8 million gross in 3,350 locations despite its impressive 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. Eichner attributed the movie’s underwhelming performance to widespread homophobia, asserting that “straight people just didn’t show up.” While that may be partially true, there are many other factors that likely prevented the film from reaching its full potential. Let’s take a look.
Bad Timing
The timing of a movie release is extremely strategic and crucial for a film’s box office performance. Rom-coms typically perform best between Valentine’s Day and Labor Day, with a small resurgence around Christmas. The summer months are the most popular time for movie ticket sales as children are out of school and it is a fun outing that offers A/C. With Bros coming out at the very beginning of October, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the flick was showed up by Smile, a horror film. It is horror season after all, and it seems like Universal and the Bros team missed their window. It begs the question whether the studio felt they couldn’t compete with the likes of ELVIS and Jurassic World over the summer.
Releasing in Theaters
We’ve heard from stars time and time again how important it is for their films to be shown in theaters. But frankly, I think this has more to do with ego than the “experience” as they claim. (By ‘they,’ I mean Tom Cruise) Even mega-stars like Kevin Hart, Sandra Bullock, Adam Sandler and even Leonardo fucking DiCaprio have starred in films that went straight to streaming platforms.
Since the pandemic, we’ve changed and most industries have been forced to evolve but that of entertainment has been very resistant to any transformations. The truth is that we’ve gotten comfortable watching movies at home. During the pandemic, plenty of people invested in their homes, adding badass audio systems, purchasing bigger TVs or even building full media rooms. Because of this and the fact that movie theaters are a magnet for teenagers, people are choosing to stay home and stream.
The Morality Push
In marketing this movie, Universal and Eichner touted the film as a must-see, not because of the content of the film but rather its context. They labeled it the “first gay rom-com” and implored audiences to see it as a moral responsibility. While this type of marketing may work for a biopic about a historical figure like Ruth Bader Ginsberg, it’s a bit of a tall order to apply this logic to a light comedy.
Also, it’s blatantly false. Love, Simon debuted in 2018 and followed a closeted gay teen in Georgia through his journey to self-discovery. According to Wikipedia, Love, Simon grossed $40.8 million in the United States and Canada, and $25.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $66.3 million. It is the 15th highest-grossing teen romance film since 1980, the third-highest by 20th Century Fox after The Fault in Our Stars and Romeo + Juliet.
Look, I love Billy Eichner. I think he’s hilarious. Bros probably is too, but let’s be real here. This movie was unsuccessful because of many factors, not limited to homophobia. Eichner is a great actor and a fantastic comedian but he is a B-list celebrity at best, with a history of mostly supporting roles. To think audiences would show up for him the same way they have for Tom Cruise, Austin Butler and Chris Pratt this year is rooted, in my opinion, in delusion. This movie could have been a smash success had it come out in the summer and over a streaming platform.
Have you seen Bros yet? If you have, spill the tea!