The Babadook is a same-sex attracted icon because of a Netflix clerical error
This study into how The Babadook became a gay star was originally published in 2017. It has been updated throughout and republished for Pride Month.
The 2014 horror movie The Babadook follows a monster, simply called the Babadook, as it terrorizes a solo mother and her son in their new home. The movie brought writer-director Jennifer Kent a modern wave of success and acclaim, but it had another, odder effect on the culture, when an apparent clerical error turned its central monster into a defining figure in queer online culture.
Why is The Babadook a homosexual icon?
Like many nice memes, it all started with an innocent Tumblr post. Tumblr user Taco-bell-rey uploaded a screenshot demonstrating The Babadook listed as one of the films available in the LGBTQ section of Netflix. It was reblogged thousands of times. The caption on that post — a one-line sentence about what this could possibly represent — cemented the Babadook’s fate.
“So proud that Netflix recognizes the Babadook as gay representation.”
Greetings. As you perceive, June is Identity Month — a time to convey on LGBT history, celebrate the collective, and honor gay icons like THE BABADOOK.
That's right. The mother-effing Babadook, y'all. The monster from the hit 2014 indie horror flick has emerged as the new homosexual icon on Twitter.
Yes, for real.
Mmmhmmm.
Why, you (most definitely) ask? Well, apparently, it all began in the summer of 2016, when some Twitter and Tumblr users pointed out that The Babadook was categorized as an LGBT show on Netflix.
And people were INSTANTLY fiery about it.
Like, very passionate.
Sure, categorizing the movie as LGBT might've been an accident, but because the internet is truly unstoppable, the Babadook has been solidified as our new queer chief and I am HERE 👏 FOR 👏 IT 👏.
He's out and proud.
He won't be kept in the closet.
He's relatable AF.
He works at Michaels!!!
He's stirring up debate.
He's in a relationship with the "Bye Bye Man" — aka the Bi Bi Man.
Seriously, he's perfect.
He'll probably win an award from the Human Rights Campaign, TBH.
Admit it: You want to snatch drinks with him.
Honestly, he's a beacon of hope for th
How on Earth Did the Babadook Grow a Gay Icon?
It could be argued that 2014's The Babadook is one of the most important horror films of this century. Not only did it bring Australia back into the conversation of excellent horror cinema after its long post-Wolf Creek hiatus, but it helped to introduce the stylized and deeply heartfelt method of storytelling we'd soon watch in the fledgling A24, or what some might phone "elevated horror." Essie Davis gives a fantastic lead act, but the show's real star is the Babadook itself. The storybook monster comes to existence as the manifestation of trauma and grief portrayed by Tim Purcell, and there are many reasons why it's one of the great modern feature monsters. The call is catchy, its design is basic yet striking, taking a lot of inspiration fromLon Chaney'sThe Man in the Beaver Hat in London After Midnight. Its vessel creature a Cabinet of Dr. Caligari-looking pop-up book was something that hadn't been seen before on screen, and gave us the unused "1, 2, Freddy's coming for you." On top of all that, he's also a contemporary queer icon.
That's right, Mr. Babadook truly became the mascot of the 2017 Pride season when w
Writing about memes is silly business. By the day I publish this piece, it will have been well over a week since the story of the Babadook’s strange lane to becoming an LGBTQ icon peaked, which in internet terms is a relative eternity. It’s still a funny story, though. Reportedly, a Netflix user noticed that the Jennifer Kent-directed instant cult classic horror The Babadook had been mistakenly filed under the LGBTQ Cinema category on the site’s streaming service. Users across social media platforms like Tumblr & Twitter then ran with the mistake, declaring the Babadook to be a gay icon. There has since been an immeasurable flood of memes inserting the Babadook into rainbow flag backdrops, stills from RuPaul’s Drag Race, and any other gender non-conforming spaces that could easily be ‘Dooked. There acquire even been in-the-flesh sightings of the Babadook at Pride parades and the filming of the Drag Race finale. It’s been a bizarrely fun way to kick off 2017’s Pride Month celebrations and, unlike most memes, I hope this one never dies.
On one of our fist posts as a site, we declared The Babadook to be one of the best films of 2014, a very
Why the “Gay Babadook” Meme Is So Bewitching
I comprehend you thought you were done with the Babadook after we left him safely tied up and munching earthworms in a basement at the complete of the eponymous 2014 Australian horror film—but, honey, you were wrong. You see, it’s LGBTQ Lgbtq+ fest season in much of the world, and our top-hatted, long-nailed, pop-up book-crafting terror of a buddy isn’t going to yearn out on the festivities, oh no.
In fact, over the past week or so, a meme built around the notion that the Babadook is queer has captivated the (queer) internet, spawning a delightful rash of fan art, Twitter jokes, and apparel—the apotheosis of which might be this voguing Babadook speedo.
So how did a character who was beautiful clearly a metaphor for a widowed mother’s grief and depression become, as he is now existence touted, an LGBTQ icon? I first encountered the meme via deaconess of gay Twitter (and Outward contributor) John Paul Brammer back in February and have been giggling hush to myself about it a few times a week ever since.
But others have traced it help to a cluster of events from the tumble of 2016, when a Tumblr user uploaded an image of their Netflix interface seeming