Get the latest gossip
‘The Boyfriend,’ Japan’s First Same-Sex Reality Show, Hopes to Normalize LGBTQ Romance in the Country: ‘Hey, They’re Just Like Us’
Netflix's Japanese same-sex reality show ‘The Boyfriend’ delivers a carefully calculated normality and moves the needle as a result.
“The Boyfriend’s” producers did, however, seek to create ethnic diversity among the housemates, casting men of Korean and Taiwanese family origin, factors still considered as social stigmas in contemporary Japan. Similarly, last year in his film “Kubi,” the venerable Kitano Takeshi re-wrote one of Japan’s most divisive historical events, a 16th century mutiny known as the Honno-ji incident, by portraying several of the male lead characters as lovers or ex-lovers. “I don’t think this show has caused a 90-degree shift in public opinion, but it might have provided a moment for those who felt distant from LGBTQ+ people to realize that everyone struggles, enjoys life, makes friends and falls in love just like anyone else,” said Lollobrigida.
Or read this on Variety