'Bros' Box Office Problem Due to Conservatism of Genre, Not Audience
newsweek.comBros, bombed at the box office continue to raise eyebrows—not least because he blamed homophobia for the disappointing audience numbers.Bros opened in fourth place last weekend, behind new horror movie Smile and two carryovers Don't Worry Darling and The Woman King.
The result prompted Eichner—Bros' star and co-writer—to unleash a series of tweets about the matter on Sunday."That's just the world we live in, unfortunately.
Even with glowing reviews, great Rotten Tomatoes scores, an A CinemaScore etc, straight people, especially in certain parts of the country, just didn't show up for Bros," Eichner wrote.Continuing to share his thoughts on the micro-blogging platform, he added: "Everyone who ISN'T a homophobic weirdo should go see BROS tonight!
You will have a blast!"However, Damon Young, an associate professor at the University of California, Berkeley's Department of Film and Media, told Newsweek that the movie's dismal $4.8 million in ticket sales could have more to do with the limits of the genre.While Young agreed that audience reluctance may have played a role in the film's performance, Bros faced something of an uphill struggle within its own chosen format."Eichner blames homophobia for the film's poor showing at the box office, and that might be a part of it," said Young. "It's true that the film did best in major metropolitan cities which have larger gay populations...
