Lukas Gage channelled the infamous ‘Demon Twink’ for new gay comedy Down Low
Lukas Gage channelled the infamous Demon Twink for his role in new film, Down Low. (Getty/ Gilbert Flores)
The White Lotus star Lukas Gage has revealed the surprising inspiration for his role in racy new queer comedy flick Down Low.
Gage, 28, stars opposite 46-year-old Star Trek actor Zachary Quinto in the upcoming film, which, if early reviews are anything to go by, looks set to be one of the most chaotic of 2023.
Down Low sees Gage play a masseuse and full-time sex-positive twink, while Quinto is Gary; a rich and sexually-frustrated zaddy with a terminal illness.
According to those who watched the feature during its debut at SXSW Film Festival in March, it opens with Gage’s Cameron giving Quinto’s Gary a helping hand, in the most literal sense.
Afterwards, Cameron encourages Gary – who is yet to have his first, all-the-way experience with another man – to join a gay dating app, and the pair go looking for a third under the frankly harrowing name “Lad and Dad”.
They meet Sammy – sweetly named ‘Looking2succ’ on the app – played by Law and Order actor Sebastian Arroyo. Sammy is in the closet, angry, and soon to be dead, with Cameron and Gary left to pick up the pieces and dispose of their hook-up’s body.
As one reviewer put it, it’s giving: “Be gay, do crime.”
Lukas Gage, who married his partner, celebrity hairdresser Chris Appleton, in April, has broken down his Down Low character in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly.
Gage revealed that around the time he and Quinto were filming for Down Low, gay Twitter was consumed by a piece of queer folklore that was forming in real-time.
That is, the now-legendary ‘Demon Twink’. One of the most infamous viral eras in recent queer social media history, the Demon Twink was the nickname given to an attendee on board a Britney boat party in New York in July 2021, who allegedly caused havoc and carnage.
According to DJ Ty Sunderland, who performed during the doomed Britney boat voyage in question, the allusive Demon Twink – whose identity is yet to be uncovered – “threw a drink at the DJ equipment”, and refused to get off of the boat’s stage unless the music stopped.
Then, when the party ended, he was allegedly found in the VIP section getting his “ass ate out in the open”.
Gage has shared that his Cameron character in Down Low is expressly inspired by the Demon Twink and his bold and brassy actions.
“I was really channeling that Demon Twink era. Cameron was inspired by the Demon Twink,” he told EW.
“I just remember filming and [the Demon Twink] was happening at the same time. I was like, ‘This was meant to be. This is kismet. This is my homework.’ It was delivered to me.”
Gage, who, like the Demon Twink is used to getting his “a*s ate”, also explained that Down Low was originally more “dark and f****d up” than the final version, with edits made in order to make it “more relatable” to the audience.
While concealing a hook-up’s dead body is hopefully not relatable to viewers, Down Low does also promise a lot of relatable laughs. According to Variety, there’s use of the term “we stan” and The Real Housewives referential comedy, while some have compared it to 2009 cishet hit The Hangover.
“I think it’s definitely a boundary-pushing film that will make a lot of people uncomfortable,” Gage added. “Maybe a lot of things will fly by people’s heads and they won’t catch onto the humour, but we just wanted to do something that was for us.”
Down Low is directed by Rightor Doyle, while Ugly Betty‘s Judith Light, Scary Movie‘s Simon Rex and Beauty and the Beast’s Audra McDonald will also star.
Down Low is set for release later in 2023.
