A gay Marine comes of age in Netflix‘s Boots, a comedic military drama that was one of the last projects from the late Norman Lear. The series comes out on Netflix on October 9. Here, we’re compiling everything you need to know about the series before pressing play on Episode 1, namely the story that inspired the series.
Parenthood‘s Miles Heizer stars in the eight-episode series that’s an offbeat take on the coming-of-age story. Set in the tough, unpredictable world of the 1990s US Marine Corps — when being gay in the military was still illegal — Boots follows directionless, closeted Cameron Cope (Heizer) and his best friend Ray McAffey (Liam Oh), the son of a decorated Marine, as they join a diverse group of recruits. Together, this ensemble navigates the literal and metaphorical landmines of boot camp, forging unlikely bonds and discovering their true selves in an environment designed to push them to their limits. With sharp wit and plenty of heart, Boots is about friendship, resilience, and finding your place in the world — even when that world seems determined to keep you in line or leave you behind.
Cameron lives a chaotic home life with his single mother, Barbara (Vera Farmiga), and brother. After being bullied in high school (he’s getting swirlies even on graduation day), Cameron decides he wants to escape his life completely, and that he wants to do so with his straight best friend, Ray. Cameron heard that joining the U.S. Marine Corps with a buddy made it easier, and he figured that boot camp would be a summer of relative fun with his friend, where he could also get stronger mentally and physically. But as teased in the Boots trailer above, this is going to be harder than he could have ever imagined (the trailer also features a rendition of George Michael‘s “Freedom! ’90” sung by the San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus, which includes military veterans).
Cameron has Ray to help him cope, but his powerful imagination manifests uniquely in private moments throughout the season as well. That coping mechanism is used to help Cameron process the intensity of training and the pressure of keeping his sexuality a secret. There’s also an instructor, Sullivan (Max Parker), who’s particularly hard on Cameron before their relationship evolves.
Back at home, Cameron’s mom becomes unmoored after his unexpected departure, but the trailer shows her pretending that her baby boy died in military service to help increase her makeup sales.
Is Netflix’s Boots based on a true story?
Patti Perret / Netflix
Yes, Boots is inspired by The Pink Marine, a memoir written by Greg Cope White (Lear wrote the book’s foreword). At their cores, The Pink Marine and Boots are about challenging the traditional definition of manliness and finding meaning and self-actualization in the least likely of places. All of the boys in Cameron’s platoon have deeply personal reasons for enlisting in the series, and the baggage they bring in with them only gets heavier as they endure the brutal military training that’s designed to turn them into killers.
The series puts a spotlight on what it was like for queer people in the Marines when being gay in the military was illegal, as well as the racism people of color faced within this system. They exist within an oppressive system, but the bonds they form with the members of their platoons give them the will to carry on and form a community.
The grueling boot camp also brings out a strength in them that they didn’t know they had. So, they carry contradicting truths simultaneously: the Marine Corps can be an immoral place, and they’re being challenged in other ways that feel meaningful. But not every recruit has an easy time coping with the idea of killing people for their country.
Cameron constantly questions whether he wants to stay through conversations with his inner self, who actually appears onscreen for conversations. Heizer plays both versions (seen below).
Miles Heizer as Cameron Cope/Inner Cameron in ‘Boots’ Season 1 Episode 1 (Netflix)
Boots hails from creator and co-showrunner Andy Parker (Tales of the City, Imposters), showrunner Jennifer Cecil (Umbrella Academy, One Tree Hill), and executive producer Lear.
Who is in Netflix’s Boots cast?
Heizer, Oh, Sullivan, and Farmiga are joined by Cedrick Cooper (Staff Sgt. McKinnon), Ana Ayora (Capt. Fajardo), Angus O’Brien (Hicks), Dominic Goodman (Nash), Kieron Moore (Slovacek), Nicholas Logan (Sgt. Howitt), Rico Paris (Santos), Blake Burt (John Bowman), Logan Gould (Mo Mason), Zach Roerig (Sgt. Knox), Johnathan Nieves (Eduardo Ochoa), Brandon Tyler Moore (Cody Bowman), Ivan Hoey Jr. (Benjy Cope), Anthony Marble (Harlan McAffey), and Joy Osmanski (Ji-Yeong Setsuko), Brett Dalton (Sgt. Pitowski), Jack Kay (Joshua Jones), and Troy Leigh-anne Johnson (Alice).
Scroll through the photos below to see more Boots stars in character.
Boots, Series Premiere, Thursday, October 9, Netflix