Billy Eichner Stands Firm on Homophobia as a Cause of ‘Bros’ Bad Box Office: ‘It Was a Factor’
thewrap.coma factor? Yes, in certain parts of the country, I think it was a factor,” he said.In its opening weekend, “Bros” made just $4.8 million, despite a 3,500 screen wide release; most of that money came from New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
On Sunday Oct. 2, after that grim box office prognosis was pronounced, Eichner caused a stir with some tweets that said in part, “Even with glowing reviews and great Rotten Tomatoes scores, an A CinemaScore etc., straight people, especially in certain parts of the country, just didn’t show up for ‘Bros.’ And that’s disappointing but it is what it is,” he said in part on Oct.
2.The comments provoked a fairly strong backlash; conservatives widely mocked him, while even Los Angeles Times writer Matt Brennan described his reaction as a “sense of self-importance” and “entitlement.”But on Friday, Eichner made his first public comment since then, and stood firm on the matter — though he also acknowledged multiple factors played a role first.Eichner for instance noted that the romantic comedy genre isn’t quite the cinema powerhouse it once was, and that the biggest recent successes have all been via streaming. “That seems to be where people want to watch these movies,” he said. “I still love seeing these movies in the theater.