Luke Macfarlane Reflects on 'Gay Masculinity' Standards Shown in Bros

Masc for masc?

Luke Macfarlane recently reflected on his ideals of masculinity and how those perspectives ended up impacting his performance as Aaron, the love interest of Billy Eichner’s character in the upcoming gay rom-com Bros.

“When I first read the Bros script, I really connected with Aaron on the idea of, ‘Where does his masculinity fit into the gay spectrum?’ And how that shuts him off a little bit from finding his authentic self,” the actor told THR.

Macfarlane, who was born in 1980, is now a 42-year-old gay man. Thus, his references of being gay and what masculinity means came from being a teenager and young adult in the 1990s. “There was something about growing up in the ’90s, our ideas of masculinity came from Abercrombie & Fitch or Calvin Klein ads,” he explained, “and that was very confusing to gay people of a certain age.”

The actor also recalled seeing the Chippendales dancers during an episode of The Phil Donahue Show back in the day, and how they became a standard of masculine-presenting men for him at the time. “You’re like, ‘Do I want to be with that or do I want to be that?’” he asked himself.

Best known for portraying mostly straight characters in TV movies from the Hallmark Channel, Macfarlane is certainly turning a new leaf for his career in Bros. With that said, the actor seems excited about moving forward in his career and serving as LGBTQ+ representation on the big screen.

We can’t wait to meet Aaron and discover how his love story plays out in Bros!

Bros opens September 30 only in theaters.

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