A new twist on the kinky BDSM sex film is on the way with the romantic dramedy Pillion. A24 has released the trailer for the new gay biker romance film. Alexander Skarsgård stars in the film with Harry Melling, both playing the motorcycle-riding couple. In addition to Skarsgård and Melling, the film stars Douglas Hodge, Lesley Sharp, Jake Shears, Paul Tallis, Jake Sharp, Anthony Welsh and the dog Maggie plays Rosie, Ray’s Rottweiler.
The synopsis, according to Variety, reads,
“Based on the 2020 novel Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones, the story follows a timid young gay man named Colin (Harry Melling) who meets Ray, the handsome leader of a motorbike club, who takes him on as his submissive while introducing him to the community of kinky, queer bikers. (The film is named for the person who sits on the back of a motorcycle.) Harry Lighton wrote and directed Pillion in his feature debut.” Lighton would garner a DGA nomination for a First-Time Theatrical Film with this movie.
The notable aspect of the film is its unapologetic graphic depiction of kinky gay sex scenes (that would even make 50 Shades of Gray blush). At the Zurich Film Festival last year, Skarsgård told the press, “It wasn’t so much about making sure we were comfortable, because we were too comfortable with each other. But there’s a dramatic narrative in these scenes, which is not always the case. I often find sex on screen quite boring. Usually, all the tension is leading up to that moment, and then once people are in the sack… During Colin’s birthday and that orgy scene, a lot happens emotionally.”
He also said he appreciated how the director, Lighton, “didn’t put on silk gloves to tell this story.” He explained, “He embraced the awkwardness of it. All these characters were fully fledged and the sex scenes weren’t graphic for the sake of being graphic. We shot way more graphic stuff than you’ve seen just now.”
Skarsgård adds, “Harry did a beautiful job of calibrating it. You don’t shy away from it because ‘Oh, we can’t show men having sex,’ but you also don’t show a closeup of a dick just because you can, for the shock value. I think my mom will like this movie, and it’s about kinky gay bikers and a D/s relationship. Portrayed with the perfect amount of respect, but not too much respect.”
Pillion rides into select theaters on February 6, then nationwide on February 20.
