For most of us, growing up as an LGBTQIA+ kid was a true nightmare. Aside from the name-calling and bullying, we were forced to get used to, our community had to witness people who went out of their way to make us believe we were not normal. So, it makes perfect sense that Peacock’s upcoming film They/Them plays out like a horror story: the movie centers around a group of kids who are sent to a conversion camp organized by Owen Whistler (Kevin Bacon). The movie is set to premiere in early August.
The first-look images released by Peacock today provide a closer look at the camp and its counselors, as well as the kids who start banding together once they realize Whistler Camp’s methods are far from comforting. Theo Germaine is Jordan, a transgender and non-binary camper who agreed to go to camp if their religious parents agreed to legally emancipate them; while Quei Tann is Alexandra, a transgender woman who was forced to attend by her parents.
In the gay male group there is Austin Crute as Toby, who went to camp under the condition that he could go to New York after it; Cooper Koch as Stu, a jock who’s conflicted about his future scholarship and what happens if he comes out; and Darwin del Fabro as Gabriel, a sensitive guy who’s had enough bullying for a lifetime.
Rounding up the team of "misfits" is Monique Kim as Veronica, a bisexual camper who is fed up with having to fight her instincts and beliefs, and Anna Lore as Kim, a closeted lesbian who thinks she can put up a front until everyone around her finally loves her. The cast also features Anna Chlumsky and Carrie Preston.
They/Them marks John Logan’s directorial debut. Even though he’s a first-time director, Logan has had a wildly successful career in Hollywood: He’s a three-time Oscar nominee who wrote the script for major films like Gladiator, Skyfall, and The Aviator. In an official statement, Logan opened up about the personal nature of the script and what he expects to achieve with this story:
“’They/Them’ has been germinating within me my whole life. I've loved horror movies as long as I can remember, I think because monsters represent 'the other' and as gay kid I felt a powerful sense of kinship with those characters who were different, outlawed, or forbidden. I wanted to make a movie that celebrates queerness, with characters that I never saw when I was growing up. When people walk away from the movie, I hope they're going to remember the incredible love that these kids have for each other and how that love needs to be protected and celebrated.”
Peacock premiers They/Them on August 5.
Check out the images and official synopsis below:
Kevin Bacon plays Owen Whistler in this slasher horror film set at an LGBTQIA+ conversion camp. Several queer and trans campers join Whistler for a week of programming intended to “help them find a new sense of freedom”. As the camp’s methods become increasingly more psychologically unsettling, the campers must work together to protect themselves. When a mysterious killer starts claiming victims, things get even more dangerous.