Another Gay Sequel’Returns!

The Film’s Director, Todd Stephens, Rewinds to a Wilder, Pre-Grindr Gay Era

By Mike Bahr

When Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild! first splashed onto screens in 2008, it was loud, raunchy, gloriously inappropriate, and proudly, unapologetically queer.

Now, as Breaking Glass Pictures rereleases the cult-favorite comedy on March 3, director Todd Stephens is revisiting the sun-soaked chaos that made the film a time capsule of late-2000s gay nightlife. Packed with outrageous Spring Break antics, fearless sex positivity, and unforgettable cameos from icons like RuPaul and Scott Thompson, the sequel captures a pre-Grindr, pre-influencer moment when the queer community thrived in bars, beaches, and wild competition rather than on apps. Nearly two decades later, Stephens reflects on the film’s camp legacy, its refusal to sanitize queer desire, and why its

messy, anything-goes spirit still feels subversive today.

Mike Bahr: Another Gay Sequel has been described as a “time capsule” of late-2000s gay nightlife. When you watch it now, what makes you laugh the hardest? What makes you think,wow, we really lived like that?

Todd Stephens: When I watch it now, I laugh hardest at all the incredible cameos we were lucky enough to land—especially RuPaul, Lady Bunny, and Colton Ford, may he rest in peace. Seeing Scott Thompson return as the dad is also hilarious. Everyone showed up ready to play and have fun, and you can feel that energy in every scene. It really captures a moment in time when gay nightlife felt outrageous, communal, and completely uninhibited.

MB: The film proudly exists in a pre-Grindr, preinfluencer world. If Gays Gone Wild! were set in 2026,

what would be the most absurd update to the competition?

TS: The smartphone literally came out while we were making the movie. I remember my producer showing me Grindr and thinking, Wow, this is going to change everything. I had no idea how right that instinct was. If we made the film today, there would somehow be even more sex—which is wild to say, considering how much there already is. Apps like Grindr and Sniffies have amplified hookup culture exponentially. We’d absolutely have to address how instant and anonymous everything has become.

MB: Camp, chaos, and sex positivity are baked into this movie. Did you ever feel pressure to soften it for wider audiences?

TS: When we premiered at Frameline in San Francisco, the Castro Theatre was packed. A woman stood up and asked me, “What will straight people think of this film?” I said, “I don’t give a f**k.” I made Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild for gay people. That was always the mission. The studio encouraged me to go as far as possible with the queerness. “No” wasn’t in our vocabulary. There were no apologies and no fear. It created a world where being gay wasn’t the issue—the characters were just trying to get laid like everyone else. I’ve never had more fun making a movie.

MB: Andy’s evolution from awkward underdog to confident heartthrob is one of the sequel’s

biggest surprises. What did you want that journey to say?

TS: Andy starts out feeling pressure to be the wildest, most promiscuous version of himself. But along the way, he falls for someone. Through that experience, he finds confidence —not from sex alone, but from connection. His growth is about discovering what actually fulfills him.

MB: The “Miss Gay Gone Wild” contest is ridiculous and weirdly revealing. Were you parodying hookup culture or celebrating it?

TS: Both! There’s a lot to poke fun at in queer sex culture. But the film isn’t laughing at anyone, it’s laughing with everyone. It’s ultimately sexpositive. The humor comes from love, not judgment.

MB: Jarod and Griff bring monogamy and relationship anxiety into an anything-goes Spring Break. Why include that tension?

TS: Because hooking up, monogamy— whatever works for you—is valid. Amid all the insanity, the

guys learn that there isn’t just one “right” way to be gay.

MB: The Perez Hilton subplot feels especially surreal in hindsight. How do you view it

now?

TS: Gossip culture was at its peak when we made the film. This was pre-smartphone —people got

their gossip on laptops. Now it’s constant and inescapable. And it’s not just celebrities

anymore. With Instagram and TikTok, we’re consuming everyone’s lives—friends and strangers alike. One thing I love about the film is that nostalgia. It takes us back to a less complicated time when gossip felt more contained.

MB: The cameo roster—RuPaul, Scott Thompson, Willam, Colton Ford—feels even more iconic today. Did any casting feel risky at the time?

TS: Casting porn actors in non-porn roles was considered risky then. I never understood why those worlds had to be separate. I believed those performers could absolutely deliver in mainstream roles. I’m so glad we cast Brent and Colton—those performances are legendary now. Brent as Stan the Merman still blows me away. He’s this beautiful, magical creature. I’m proud we didn’t draw a

line between “porn” and “non-porn” actors. We simply cast the best person for the role.

MB: The film’s refusal to sanitize queer sexuality was bold and controversial. Does it still feel subversive?

TS: I think it absolutely does. No one is really making outrageous, politically incorrect, no-holds-barred

spoofs anymore. There used to be so many comedies that were wrong in the best possible way. This movie crosses the line—just like the films that inspired it. Today, comedians and filmmakers are more cautious, worried about being canceled. I recently looked at the reviews on Letterboxd and laughed—people call it the worst thing they’ve ever seen but still give it ten stars. It’s a love-it-or-hate-it

movie. And even the people who hate it laugh. That’s why I made it.

MB: With this re-release introducing the film to a new generation, what do you hope younger viewers take away?

TS: I hope they’re inspired by a world before smartphones—when people went to queer resorts, bars,

and safe spaces to form real community. So many of those spaces are disappearing. The resort where we shot, the Shubert, is now straight. Every queer resort we filmed at is gone. That’s heartbreaking. So my message is: support queer businesses. Meet people in real life. Build community; sexually or otherwise. That messy, loud, joyful connection is what this film celebrates most.

Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone

Wild! is now available on all major

streaming platforms.