By Kevin Quinn
Pack your Speedos and get ready to board the Pines ferry because you are about to embark on a hilarious trip to Fire Island.
Fire Island, written by comedian Joel Kim Booster and along with Bowen Yang, Matt Rogers, Conrad Ricamora, Torian Miller, Tomás Matos, and Margaret Cho.
According to the film’s official synopsis, Fire Island is “an unapologetic, modern-day rom-com inspired by Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. The story centers around two best friends who set out to have a legendary week-long summer vacation with the help of cheap rosé and a cadre of eclectic friends.”
The first preview shows the boys of Fire Island partying it up at Low Tea, drinking rooftop Prosecco, and looking for love among the sea of shirtless men. Will they find a summer romance?
“I remember it was a real struggle to scrounge up the money to be able to afford to go those first years,” Booster told EW about when he first started vacationing out on Fire Island. “But once we got there, it was like a part of myself had been unlocked. I didn’t realize how much weight I was carrying around existing in largely heterosexual spaces.”
Though the Pines and Cherry Grove communities of Fire Island have long been safe havens for gays and lesbians, only a few films — notably Longtime Companion, Parting Glances, The Normal Heart, and 2019’s Last Ferry — have actually filmed there. Of course, Booster’s Fire Island is not to be confused with Logo’s 2017 reality television series of the same name.
“We made something really, really special and unique and gay,” Booster told Vanity Fair about bringing his dream project to life. “The fact that we did that feels miraculous, considering what we were up against.”
Fire Island is directed by Andrew Ahn (Spa Night) and was filmed on location on the island last summer. It will now hit Hulu on June 3, just in time to kick off Pride Month.
