From Action Figure to Disney Action HeroĬhris Rock and Dave Chappelle Are Headed to London for Joint Stand-Up Show 'Lightyear' Is Here, But When Can You Stream the New Pixar Movie Online?
And sadly, that historic moment of progress may have hurt the film’s chances at the kind of global domination Bohemian enjoyed. There was one notable difference between the films when it came to telling their subjects’ stories, however: While Bohemian glossed over the topic of Mercury’s queerness, Rocketman met John’s love life head-on, becoming the first major studio film to depict gay male sex onscreen. Paramount Pictures had taken a big gamble with Rocketman, spending $41 million on the production and entrusting the lead role to an actor who wasn’t quite a household name (Taron Egerton), but the success of Bohemian - for which Rami Malek had won a Best Actor Oscar in March - augured good things. Just months earlier, Bohemian Rhapsody, another rock-music biopic, this one centered on Queen’s Freddie Mercury, had pulled off a surprise box-office coup, raking in $911 million worldwide. When the Elton John biopic Rocketman opened at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2019, expectations were sky-high.
MCDBORH FE001 - Credit: Nick Delaney/20th Century Fox Licensing/Everett Collection
