Chicago Cubs OK Licensing of First Major League Baseball Approved Gay-Themed Movie

The Associated Press
The Associated Press

With the release of the new indie flick, “Landline,” the Chicago Cubs have become the first Major League Baseball team to allow its logo and name to be licensed for a gay-themed movie, a report reveals.

Filmmaker Matthew Aaron has made a movie filled with gay characters that is more about the internet than it is about gays, Entertainment Weekly reports. But, whatever the plot, in many ways the film revolves around the characters’ love for the Chicago Cubs.

The film is a thoroughly Chicago film based completely in the Windy City, and features many of Chicago’s most famous landmarks, including the Cubs’ Wrigley Field.

MLB licensing chief Robin Jaffe helped guide Aaron through the licensing requirements and approval process, and when all was said and done producers realized that “Landline” had become the first specifically gay-themed movie to gain MLB approval.

“In my research, there’s never been a film that stars LGBTQ actors made with the association of the MLB, the NBA, the NFL, or the NHL,” Aaron told the magazine. “[But] it’s not a film about being gay. It’s about two husbands who are going through their marriage together — typical, normal problems that everyone has.”

“We never thought we were going to get [licensing for] the Cubs, and we never thought we’d get [to shoot at] Wrigley Field. We were just hoping that my character would be able to wear a Cubs jersey here and there for a couple thousand dollars,” Aaron added. “Robin really wanted to support indie filmmaking, which they’ve never done before, and they wanted to support this film. To top it all off, they wanted to support a film with LGBTQ leads in it.”

While the film prominently features the Cubs — and even has a cameo by famed Cubs player Ryne Sandberg — the movie isn’t specifically about baseball. The flick features Aaron’s character as he finds younger, more tech-savvy competitors beating him out of new opportunities at his place of employment. The film then follows the character’s subsequent decision to divorce himself from cell phones, technology, and the Internet. And as Aaron navigates through his decision to dump technology he deals with the fallout from friends, family and his gay husband.

The film stars gay actor Matthew Aaron, and features comedic actor Tom Arnold (“Rosanne”), Jim O’Heir (“Parks and Recreation”), Nick Searcy (“Justified”), James Dumont (“Jurassic World”), Louis Lombardi (“The Sopranos”), Betsy Brandt (“Breaking Bad”), and famed Cubs player Ryne Sandberg.

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.