Many straight men consider themselves seasoned “film bros,” but in reality, they are only fans of a few notable actors. 

The list includes: Leonardo DiCaprio from “The Wolf of Wall Street” (2013), Matthew McConaughey from “Interstellar” (2014) and Robert Pattinson from “The Batman” (2022). Also, Timothée Chalamet from the “Dune” series, Paul Mescal from “Gladiator II” (2024) and Jacob Elordi from “Frankenstein” seem to be rising film bro favorites. 

Film bros tend to cyclically anoint a select few men once they appear in “serious,” prestige-coded franchises in their eyes.

But before these actors got praise for their “serious” films, many women and queer individuals already appreciated their skills in movies that film bros were repelled by. It is these audience members who pledged their allegiance to these actors with a plethora of fan edits, fanfiction websites and social media comments. 

It’s only right that we give these watchers their due credit for finding skilled performers long before film bros catch on. The “chick flicks” and queer media where these actors first showed off their talents also deserve the respect they’re owed. 

Take McConaughey. As much as film bros claim they love his works, they tend to ignore the plethora of romantic comedies he did in the early 2000s. “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” (2003) — a film with a predominantly female audience — remains one of his most culturally enduring roles. 

Straight men’s dismissal of these films isn’t about quality; this is just one instance of a social pattern wherein straight men devalue anything with an audience primarily made up of women or LGBTQIA+ people.

Research shows that when media becomes associated with women or girls, its perceived artistic value decreases — a dynamic Harvard Business School lecturer Jill Avery calls gender contamination. 

While straight men now endorse Pattinson as their Batman, many once found “Twilight” (2008) and teen girls’ obsession with it and his character abhorrent. When “Twilight” premiered, women made up around three-quarters of the audience, with more than half being under 25 years old, according to Summit Entertainment LLC, the studio that released the film. 

Even though straight men enjoy DiCaprio’s macho characters, many still look down on “Titanic” (1997) — despite it being DiCaprio’s most critically acclaimed film with 11 Academy Awards. 

The same is true for the newer additions to the film bro fan club. 

Film bros began worshipping Chalamet for his portrayal of Paul Atreides from “Dune” (2021), idolizing him as their personal Lisan al-Gaib. However, many teenage girls and queer individuals recognized his talents much earlier as lovers of his performances in films including “Call Me by Your Name” (2017), “Lady Bird” (2017) and “Little Women” (2019). 

As for Elordi, he has been adored by women and the LGBTQIA+ community for years. I distinctly remember one middle school lunch with my friends spent fangirling over him in “The Kissing Booth” (2018). Teenage girls and queer people continued supporting him in other projects including “Euphoria” (2019) and “Saltburn” (2023), which both proved to be bold portrayals of queerness, homoeroticism and masculinity. 

Still, he is seemingly only now receiving praise from a wider audience for playing the Creature in “Frankenstein” (2025).

Again and again, the actors that film bros claim they love were first loved by women and queer people; moreover, without these communities supporting their earlier films, these actors most likely would not have gotten the roles that film bros now cherish them for. 

According to the user-compiled 2024 Archive of Our Own Demographics Survey, only 12.4% of respondents identified as men, while women, nonbinary people and gender-diverse fans make up more than 85% of the platform. Additionally, 81.4% of respondents identify as LGBTQIA+. 

The fans of these works that the mainstream deems as too feminine, too romantic, too taboo, too niche or too frivolous are the ones who helped the actors progress in their career; the financial success and cultural relevance of earlier projects allowed the actors to make the works they are most interested in later on in their career. 

For example, both Pattinson and his “Twilight” co-star Kristen Stewart had the privilege of shifting toward more indie films because of their financial security following the franchise’s success. 

Consequently, the young women and LGBTQIA+ individuals who support actors and their works that either aren’t mainstream or are even marginalized by the mainstream are the real “film bros,” if you will. They are the ones noticing underrated actors before their big breakout in Hollywood. 

So, if you want to know who the next big star of this generation will be, avoid asking the guy who is obsessed with Quentin Tarantino and maybe give a heartfelt romance that young women enjoy or a queer cult classic a fair chance instead.