I n an era of high-concept dating shows, the premise of Netflix’s latest Japanese offering, The Boyfriend, is a pretty simple one. A group of singles in their twenties and thirties move into a beautiful house for a few weeks in the summer; over that time, they hope that they’ll share a romantic spark with someone who might then become their partner. What makes The Boyfriend groundbreaking, though, is that all the contestants are gay and bisexual men, making the series the first same-sex dating show based in Japan.
The country is the only G7 nation that has not yet legalised same-sex marriage , despite polls suggesting that more than 70 per cent of the population would be in favour of doing so. Few Japanese celebrities feel able to come out, often fearing that opening up about their sexuality might damage their careers; media representation of the LGBT+ community often falls into flamboyant stereotypes. Against this backdrop, a show like this one feels like a huge step forward in normalising queer relationships.
After all, same-sex couples have been able to get married in Britain since 2014, and had the option to have a civil partnership for about 10 years before that, but it was only in 2023 that an all-gay dating show , I Kissed a Boy , aired on British TV (followed by I Kissed a Girl this year). It’s also a leap of faith for the contestants too. We’re introduced to them in classic dating show style, with a quick montage of their life outside the series, but their op.
