Party people

Jim Parsons and Matt Bomer star in a groundbreaking drama about a group of gay friends

- JUDY EWENS, SEAN MARLAND, STEVEN PERKINS

Mart Crowley’s 1968 play The Boys in the Band has rarely been far from controversy. As one of the first plays to unapologetically place a group of gay men at its centre, the original stage production struggled at first to find a US theatre willing to put it on, or actors happy to play its characters.

In 1970, it was made into an equally contentious film – but as time passed and gay representation became more commonplace, The Boys in the Band attracted criticism for its characters, perceived as shallow and self-pitying.

To mark its 50th anniversary, the play was revived on Broadway in 2018 with a cast of entirely out gay actors – including The Big Bang Theory’s Jim Parsons and Magic Mike’s Matt Bomer – all of whom have returned for this Netflix film version, produced by the prolific Ryan Murphy.