Joel Schumacher — the 79-year-old gay director behind the gay-ish 1987 vampire flick The Lost Boys and the 1997 nipples-on-the-Batsuit camp-fest Batman & Robin — recently spoke to Vulture about how “making movies is not all blowjobs and sunglasses.”
The interview covers a lot of topics, but those regarding his gay sex life have caught people’s eyes because the internet runs on outrage and lust. In particular, his claim that he has slept with 10,000 to 20,000 guys over his lifetime.
Did we mention that we stan? We totally stan.
Related: WATCH: High-School Jock Gets Dis-“Oriented” In Joel Schumacher’s Short “Man In The Mirror”
Schumacher often jokes, “I’m overpaid, I’m overprivileged, and I’m oversexed,” but he in this interview, he adds, “Most gay men have many partners because it’s not a very ‘no’ culture. I started drinking at 9, smoking at 10, and fooling around sexually when I was 11.”
In high school, he openly dated women while secretly sleeping with men, but he says he’d been interested in older men since his younger years.
“There was a married man in our neighborhood, but we weren’t having missionary-style sex,” Schumacher says. “We were, as we would say now, messing around.” He adds that a lack of education about gay sex gave him no preset expectations of what to do.
Schumacher says he never did sex work nor does he feel as if he was raped, molested or otherwise abused by the older men he slept with.
“There are very seductive children,” he says. “I was one of them. I was very seductive at a very young age. That doesn’t mean that anybody who was older should’ve said yes or just complied, but I feel in my lifetime I’ve always been a very results-oriented person.”
Then, when the interviewer asks Schumacher, “Have you ever guessed the number of partners you’ve had?” Schumacher answers, “It would be in the double-digit thousands, but that is not unusual. 10 or 20 (thousand).”
If that sounds like a lot, remember that in his 1991 book, A View From Above, heterosexual pro-basketball player Wilt Chamberlain claimed to have slept with over 20,000 women by age 55, so Schumacher’s actually an underachiever by that standard.
But let’s do some quick math on that for fun: If Schumacher has been schlepping dudes since age 11 and he’s 79 now, that’s 68 years — 20,000 dudes divided by 68 years equals about 294 dudes a year or roughly six dudes a week … every week … for 68 years.
It seems like a lot of that sluttery likely occurred during Schumacher’s “lost summer” in the Pines of Fire Island when he spent most of his time stoned, on speed and wearing a Speedo.
Schumacher says:
Oh my God, you’re horny all the time. And fortunately, it was quite available. You’re just starving for sex all the time. Every drug, in my mind, was a pathway to sex. So was alcohol. There was an adventure going on, and sex would be the cherry on that sundae.
Now, a lot of gay people are getting married, they’re adopting, or they’re having children. There wasn’t any of that when I was young. If you went into a gay bar and there were 200 men in there, and you said, ‘Okay, who wants to have a little house with a white picket fence, and a dog, and a child, raise your hands,’ or ‘Who wants to get laid tonight?’ The concept of a lovely suburban life or raising children was not a high concept.
While the nuclear family is a fine goal, some of us prefer to stay mutants.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
10,000 guys??
amateur!! :-p
JaidenSanders1381
10,000 guys??
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kookookachoo
How true.
ricdardc1
Sure beats Ghetto Slut ….” KKKim K. ” on Servicing more men than an Unemployment office
RIGay
He was featured prominently in the CNN documentary “Halston” and made some mention of this there as well.
Cam
And he remembers at least 30 of them.
curiobi
;D this!
phtdesign
mountaincowboy doesn’t sound that off to me, just a bit long-windeed with a lot to sAy!
curiobi
Damn, that man has led a life, where the hell are his memoirs?! I must read that book! ;D
CenterRight
What a disgusting life he has been living and how is it possible that one can sleep with so many other guys? Most men have 10 or 20 max partners in their lifetime. Sadly this guy is a shameless sl*t.
bradford44444
You have chosen to be hateful to someone you do not know and have no business with. Honestly, your comment says more about you than anything else: you’re rude, judgmental, and unwelcome here.
Rock-N-RollHS
Lol. How sad to be you!
Chrisk
Oh noes. A shameless slut. Where’s my shocked face avatar. 🙂
Juanjo
I am shocked that Miss CenterRight is shocked. Someone help me to the fainting couch.
curiobi
Once again. GO AWAY TROLL. No one wants you here spewing your hate and calling everything disgusting. You’re bitter and dried up, we get it, we just don’t care.
MountainCowboyMan
Wow, Were you raised Cathylick On An Island With Only Supplies Delivered Every 10 years? LOL. You Appear To Not Realize, The 1950’s & 60’s Through, Sex Was Not What It Became Later In The Manor of Meeting People & Going Out On Dates & Moving In With Someone. In Fact At 11 & Up Your Dennis Going To See Mr. Wilson Working In His Garage, Not The Disco Ball Dance Bar Yet Or Coffee Cafe’. LOL! Tragically People Judge Before Knowing What Life Journey LGBTQ Is All About. Today’s Wee Young Adults Have No Clue What Life Was Before They Came Along. Tragically They Really Don’t Appear To Care & Have No Clue What Camp Talk Is & What It Is To March, Stand Up, Sit In & Demand Civil Rights & Equality For Starters. I Would Not Want To Be Born Today, The LGBTQ Community of Today’s Generation Have No Clue What Was Given Up & Given Forward So They Could Have The Life They Take For Granted Today. Tragically I Have No Interest In Their Self-Serving Needy’ Lives. Today’s LGBTQ Community Generation Is w/Their Hands Out & Open To Have Society Give To Them Because They Feel They Have The Right To Take Freely. Their Sociological Make-Up Is A 5 Minute Attention Span. Their Into Selfy Pics, All About Them. Their Loss Of A Very Shallow Life! Oh Gee & How They Dress Today, A Lost Cause! Baggy Jeans Look Like They Crapped In Them Walking Around. Try Talking To A 20’s Something Today & It’s Like Talking To A Empty Space w/Eye’s On It Looking At Their Cell Phones Tweeting & Checking If They Are LIKED & How Much. In The LGBTQ Community of Generations Ago, We Either Settled Down Because We ‘Fell In Love’ For Life & Not LIKE, & Of Course We All Had Some Relationships That Did Not Last & Some of Us We Were Single But We Still Were Very Connected To Our LGBTQ Community & Circle of Genuine Friends. In Fact Anyone In The Circle of Friends We Had Was Ever In Need, Medically, $$$$, Job’s, Housing, Food, You Name It, We Would All Respond & Help. It Was Not A $10 Dollar Donation On MC or Visa Click & Done With. Slow Down Today’s LGBTQ Community & Look & Enjoy Your Fellow Brother’s & Sister’s 24/7. You Can Still Move Around The Country Or Planet & Be Very Connected w/Your Circle of Genuine Friends Your Whole Life. Oh & Learn How To Cook & Make Coffee & Tea It Will Help You Survive & Enjoy Real Food & Drinks! LMFAO! Oh Gee & Get Things w/Less Buttons To Push & More Time To Hold Another Persons Hand & Hug. The Rewards Are 100% Priceless. Just In Case If Your On A Pill Daily To Keep From Getting HIV, You Also Want To Wear A Trojan At All Times When Having Sex. Ok, Someone Tell Me, Are Today’s LGBTQ Generation Having Genuine Bonding Sexual Relationships Anymore? Before I Hear Any Ranting From My Sound Logic, Yes I Am Old School & Those Of Us Who Are For The Most Part, Have & Own The Roof Over Our Heads, We Own Our Vehicles, Grocery Shop & Cook Our Meals, Pay All Our Bills Monthly, Many of Us Went To University & Worked Our Way Through & Used Our Degree’s For The Professions We Were In. Others Went Into The Service Fields of Learned Skills. We Live On A Basic Budget & We Don’t Need LIKES To Know Other People Who Never Have Known Us To Make Us Feel Wanted or Have LIKED Friends.
CenterRight
MountainCowboy, I don’t know how serious your mental illness is but I have a strong urge to put you and those who think like you in a loony bin or a psyche ward.
frankcar1965
The Queerty shill to keep all the queers talking and clicking.
adje
Disgusting is the religious-fanatic assumption that you can judge and condemn others on their sexuality.
Hdtex
Just because you’re ugly and self-loathing CenterRight, doesn’t mean we all are.
Rock-N-RollHS
I was that kid that J.S. was. So glad I had the memories. Sad that some of the adults I lassoed in could be charged these days, but I would NEVER snitch!
rray63
Okay, I may not be the smartest person on the planet but if he had sex with 20K @ 79 y/o that is 253 people per year for all 79 years? When did he find time for directing his movies? I mean I’ve had my share and then some but 10K or 20K? Heck, at my best (or is that worst) it was only 30-50 in a year and I felt like a slut, lol.
Juanjo
In my youth, I could easily have done that many. I was a slut from age 13 and by my late teens and early 20s I had discovered gay movies houses and bathhouses. I had also discovered sailors and marines which living near a Navy base were in plentiful supply and horny as hell. Some weekends when a few ships were in port, I could have done 200 between Friday noon and Sunday evening.
OzJosh
Perhaps you’re imagining he did them one at a time?!
Esscourt
Epstein, Weinstein, Schumacher—all cut from the same cloth, all old pervs.
curiobi
Huh? :O
Epstien trafficked underage girls. Weinstien raped acresses. They are/were both heterosexual, sexual predators.
HOW DOES A GAY MAN HAVING CONSENSUAL SEX COMPARE?! Are you trolling? Or do you know something we don’t? If so spill, otherwise, hell no! One of these things is NOT like the others!
mr guy
Some things are best kept to yourself and your intimate circle…oh.. that’s practically everyone anyway..so carry on
Brian
I wonder how many of them were guys trying to get a part in one of his movies?
Catholicslutbox
I was about to say… it’s not like he was good looking.
nitejonboy
I’m sorry, but why is this something to be proud of ? I had my slut days, but I don’t look back on it fondly. I’d rather have a little bit of respect for myself now.
hayesj
Loved my slutty days but glad I’m not young anymore. I had a good bite of that apple.
buzzy58
Some of you guys are SO lucky. I wish like hell I had some “adventures” like you guys. Damn I hate growing up in such a conservative time.
Brian
You’re just not trying hard enough. If we could rack up those kinds of numbers through the AIDS epidemic, you can do it in the age of hookup apps.
andrewl
Agree with you totally. I had my fun, was slutty but am glad I moved on and can look back with fond memories. I am amazed though Mr Shcumaker did not catch HIV/AIDS. He obviously used protection and so is a good walking advertisment for safe sex.
Ajs33308
That’s impressive WHY?
djmcgamester
Famous guy has sex with lots of people. News at 11.
@Brian: No kidding. While I dodged that bullet it wasn’t because I was especially smart about it.
Brian
Right? Thank God I never liked getting fcked, so I mostly stuck to oral. Otherwise I’m sure I’d have been dead for 30 years by now.
truthseeker
Who cares. He ruined Batman. This cannot be forgiven
Theweatherman
I thought I was a whore with approximately 200 sex partners. Yikes.
screwtop
If it’s over 20,000, he’s got me beat. (If it’s only 10,000, he’s a loser – and why does he look so tired?)
Phillip
He is 79 yrs. old for goodness sake; he earned it. 😉
JoshGL
It’s not difficult to ring up big numbers if you live in a large city…
An average of three per week is completely doable between 18 and 55. The early years will be much higher and the later years tapering off.
That’s about 5,800.
Any more than that and you’re really getting into slut territory.
There is one big caveat: there is no way you’re not going to repeat a whole bunch. It’s impossible to keep track of everyone, so that could bring the number down to 5,000 or so.
surfpenis
As best as I can calculate, I’ve had sex about 5300 times with 7200 guys. And I remember almost every one of them.
iron
Most gay men have many partners because it’s not a very ‘no’ culture
“There are very seductive children,” he says. “I was one of them. I was very seductive at a very young age. That doesn’t mean that anybody who was older should’ve said yes or just complied, but I feel in my lifetime I’ve always been a very results-oriented person.”
Wilt Chamberlain claimed to have slept with over 20,000 women by age 55,
Age 14 = 41 years = 500 a year + 9.6 per week = 1.37 per day.
Compare this to ejaculations. medically feasiable. This does not take into age levels. From pubity to potato water However a quick review by prime time. 14 to 50 ? that a few pints/gallons of protein
mgconlan
I hadn’t even known Joel Schumacher was Gay until he appeared on the recent CNN documentary “Halston” and mentioned that he and Halston used to cruise together on Fire Island in the 1970’s. I’m surprised that he’d say that about himself in the “#MeToo” age since it’s only going to make people wonder if you HAD to have sex with him to get into one of his movies. He seems to be inviting the kinds of accusations that destroyed Kevin Spacey’s career.
joeboyle49
OH WOW THATS A LOT OF MEN! I MIGHT HAVE HAD ABOUT A 1,000 IN MY LIFE TIME AND YES THATS A LOT TOO.
nitejonboy
His last movie was shot in my hometown, and it bombed miserably. I decided for fun to go to a fancy furniture store and pretend to be his son and act like I was shopping for furniture for his rental house while he was here. I don’t know what came over me, I had a friend at the time who I would do these wild stunts with. It was funny at the time.
I just can’t believe he’s frigging bragging about screwing 20,000 men…so many wonderful men died of AIDS for so much less and he’s bragging about being a whore..it’s kind of a slap in the face to the gay community if you ask me, he’s lucky he doesn’t have AIDS, I’d have traded him for Haltson any day..Halston had talent, Shumacher’s films are crap.
jomax36
Ewwww. Gross. No way look at him. I would not rate him a 10. Shit I would not rate him 2 either. Even if he has a penis the size of King Kong. I still pass. He probably has a casting couch to have sex with men for parts. He is the reason Batman and Robin was the funniest gay theme superhero movie. He put nipples on the suit. Then he did ass flash shots. Couldn’t help but turn it into a big joke.