Spring break’s never been gayer than in this shockingly raunchy 2008 comedy

Welcome back to our queer film retrospective, “A Gay Old Time.” In this week’s column, Spring Break is a’bloom, so let’s celebrate the season by revisiting 2008’s campy comedy Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild!

Spring has officially sprung! People around the country have slowly begun to come out of hibernation and trade their snow jackets for short-shorts. The days are longer, the weather is getting hotter, and the shadow of summer looms larger, day by day. And this week, college students are getting their first taste of poolside debauchery with the arrival of Spring Break.

How about we take this to the next level?

Subscribe to our newsletter for a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Subscribe to our Newsletter today

Although Spring Break is a uniquely American collegiate tradition that is most widely associated with painfully heterosexual frat boys & sorority girls, it actually shares a lot of commonality with queer party culture. It’s all about letting go of the stress of everyday life and going all in on a week of excess, sex, and alcohol. So, basically any weekend in Fire Island, Provincetown, or aboard a queer-themed cruise, right?

This week, we’ll take a look at the sequel of one of the most notorious gay comedies of the early 2000s that’s all about a group of gays going on spring break, one that attempts to be both a parody of its straight counterparts and a movie aimed directly at our community with its humor and sensibilities.

The Set-Up

The teen sex comedy went through a revitalization in the late ’90s and early 2000s, epitomized by American Pie in 1999 and its many sequels. These films followed groups of (mostly male) not-kids-but-not-yet-adults and their quests to get laid at any cost. They were raunchy, juvenile, and wildly successful with a certain generation of millennials. But they were also painfully and overwhelmingly straight.

But the tireless pursuit of sex is by no means a solely heterosexual experience—far from it!—so writer-director Todd Stephens took it upon himself to right that wrong, and made Another Gay Movie in 2006. The film followed a group of four gay high school students who are trying to get laid before their last summer together comes to an end. They are all based on broad archetypes of the teenage experience: Griff, the nerd (Mitch Morris); Jarod, the jock (Jonathan Chase); Andy, the awkward horndog (Michael Carbonaro); and Nico, the flamboyant boy (Jonah Blechman). 

The film was just another one of the many teen sex offshoots that chased American Pie’s success, while also feeling like part of the spoof movie trend that started with the Scary Movie franchise that same decade. But it became an unexpected niche hit with gay audiences, who were craving representation in less serious genres and stories. It may not have been the most sophisticated script with the most elevated filmmaking, but it was reflecting humor and experiences that, realistic or not, resonated with our culture. So of course, a sequel was inevitable.

Gonna Go Spring Breakers

Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild! was made two years after the original. It follows our core group on a Fort Lauderdale trip for a “Gays Gone Wild!” competition to see who can have sex with the most guys. Their friendship, restraint, and competitive spirits will be put to the test as they encounter obstacles like a triad of jealous and territorial gays all named Jasper, the insecurities of monogamy, and even a fantasy merman played by adult film star Brent Corrigan (talk about being in a time capsule!).

Three of the four original cast members were recast, explained with a clever punchline at the beginning referencing agents afraid that actors doing two gay movies in a row may hurt their careers. Only Jonah Blechman returned as Nico, with Jake Mosser, Aaron Michael Davis, and Jimmy Clabots taking over the roles of Andy, Griff and Jarod, respectively.

The sequel maintains the sketch-like quality of the original with not much storyline to follow. The premise serves more as an excuse to play out endless jokes about gay sex, fetishes, and package size. Every scene finds a way to somehow have a shirtless hunk grinding against one of the principal cast members, while emotional arcs and nuanced performances are merely suggested.

Guest Stars A-Go-Go

Think of it as a 90-minute Drag Race acting challenge, which feels appropriate since RuPaul plays a prominent supporting role as Tyrell Tyrelle, the person in charge of activities at the hotel (with iconic drag queen Lady Bunny playing the host of the Gays Gone Wild! competition).

While the first movie operated more as a parody and direct analogue to straight sex comedies, Another Gay Sequel’s intention and effect is less clear. The novelty element of the spoof has been heavily diluted (even if you see this as a parody of things like MTV’s Girls Gone Wild! Series), and without it, all that’s left is a series of sexual innuendos, gross-out comedy, and endless references to enemas, poppers, and bottoming.

There are a few other cameos that showcase where gay culture was at that time with pop culture mainstays like Perez Hilton, Scott Thompson, Amanda Lepore, American Idol alum Jim Verraros and Willam making small appearances throughout. You could never call the film boring or uninteresting, but it isn’t particularly insightful, either.

What Happens In Fort Lauderdale…

There is something refreshing about these films, though. While a lot of queer pop culture and entertainment relies on an encyclopedic knowledge of references, figures, and witticisms, these movies are reduced to the very bare comedic bones of what everyone in our community—to some extent or other—has experience with or at least basic knowledge of. For many, a throwaway line about Joan Crawford’s filmography or Madonna’s B-list catalogue may go over their heads, but we can all laugh about (or at least recognize) golden showers or lube, right?

In a way, Another Gay Sequel is the spring break of gay movies. It’s a place where you can go to disconnect and indulge with basic urges and responses. It’s trashier fare than we’re used to for the rest of the year, yet it brings together like-minded people from all walks of life in a single place.

It’s something you can feel you’ve outgrown after many years away, but the memories can still give you a hearty laugh, even if by now you know better.

Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild! is available for digital rental or purchase via Amazon Prime Video or Apple TV.

You can keep track of all LGBTQ+ films covered in our A Gay Old Time column via writer Jorge Molina’s handy Letterboxd List.

Related

‘Edge Of Seventeen’ & ‘Another Gay Sequel’ filmmaker looks back on the challenges of telling gay stories
Between filming “in the closet” and working with adult entertainer Mermen, Todd Stephens opens up about bringing two very different movies to life.

Sign up for the Queerty newsletter to stay on top of the hottest stories in LGBTQ+ entertainment, politics, and culture.