feel the rush

Jeremy Allen White has us in a chokehold with this one-two punch of homoerotic photoshoots

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Harris Dickinson, Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, and Stanley Simons in 'The Iron Claw'
Image Credit: “The Iron Claw,’ A24

If someone on Jeremy Allen White’s team is trying to get the gays in his corner of the ring, they’re doing a damn good job of it.

Best known for the long-running Showtime dramedy Shameless and now his Emmy-nominated star turn in FX’s The Bear, the actor is having a major moment in the spotlight ahead of this December’s highly anticipated wrestling biopic, The Iron Claw.

White will play Kerry Von Erich, part of the real-life wrestling dynasty said to be the subjects of a family curse due to the heartbreaking tragedies that befell them in the ’80s and ’90s.

Alongside Zac Efron and Harris Dickinson (Beach Rats), White put on a shocking amount of muscle to become the hulking athlete, which is on full display in the trailer and early images from The Iron Claw. Maybe it’s the singlets, but the whole thing would seem very homoerotic—if it weren’t for the fact that the guys are all playing brothers.

Even though the movie might not deliver on the homoeroticism, White’s the centerfold star of two splashy magazine photoshoots that are definitely leaning in, sending the internet into a frenzy.

First up is an EW digital cover story, which White shares with Efron and Dickinson, looking ruggedly handsome in some nondescript barn. The accompanying photo spread is so in-your-face MASC that it’s basically camp, showing the trio lounging on hay bales, tending the farm, and eating chicken wings without a napkin in sight (which, unfortunately, is super f*cking hot).

Related:

Get in the ring with these 10 gay wrestling stories told on screen–from the heroic to the homoerotic

Is it hot in here, or is it just this spandex singlet?

The interview focuses on the actors’ brotherly bond, which was largely forged as the trained alongside one another at the gym—or packed on the calories at cast dinners.

“I was just eating frozen turkey patties and avocados and protein shakes and waffles and almond butter,” says of his extreme bulking diet in preparation for the role. And yet this man still has a six-pack??? We are in awe—and so is the internet:

If that wasn’t enough, less than 24 hours later, British GQ dropped their own cover story with White—honoring him as their “Man Of The Year”—and the photos are somehow even more gay?

Styled like a prep school kid, the spread features the actor in polos and short-shorts, surrounded by half-naked men in the locker room, in the showers, at the beach, and at the gym. It’s giving early-2000s Abercrombie & Fitch. It’s giving… early 2000s wet dreams, to be honest!

Gay Twitter™ is eating it up, with some saying it looks like the shots were taken on the set of Troye Sivan‘s “Rush” video:

If the whole thing feels designed for the male gaze gays, there’s good reason: Photographer and filmmaker Luke Gilford, whose previous projects include National Anthem, a photo series and upcoming indie film all about LGBTQ+ rodeo stars and queering the classic, American Western idea of masculinity.

Related:

From Roman emperors to rowdy cowboys, Hollywood’s depiction of masculinity has always been, well, pretty gay

Hollywood has always been flush with queer artists, both behind and in front of the camera, telling stories that have simmered with subliminal same-sex desire, particularly between men who are meant to represent masculine ideals. 

The GQ feature itself largely stays focused on White’s sudden ascent to Hollywood “It Boy,” but it does feature some gems that make it a worthwhile read, including more talk of his fitness regime for The Iron Claw, and White referring to himself as a “short king.”

Well, this short kind can pin us to the mat any day!

Scroll down below for a closer look at Jeremy Allen White’s thirsty GQ shoot:

The Iron Claw hits theaters on December 22.

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