Pop Culture Happy Hour — “Pillion” (Feb 16, 2026)

Episode Overview

The Pop Culture Happy Hour team tackles “Pillion”, a new film depicting a gay BDSM biker romance. In a lively, nuanced, and, at times, humorous discussion, hosts Glen Weldon, Bob Mondello, and guest journalist Rihanna Cruz break down the film’s approach to queer storytelling, kink representation, its emotional undercurrents, generational tensions, and how tonality affects reception. Key debates revolve around authenticity, normativity in storytelling, and the complicated emotions at the heart of “Pillion.”

Main Themes

1. “Pillion” — A Surprising Queer Coming-of-Age “Dom Com”

• The film follows Colin, a meek 30-something living with his parents, as he’s drawn into a sub/dominant biker relationship with the mysterious Ray.
• It’s both a romance and a coming-of-age story in an unexpected subculture context.
• The title refers to the passenger seat of a motorcycle, symbolizing Colin’s journey and passivity at the film’s outset.
  • “Pillion is the passenger seat on a motorcycle. That bugged me.” (Glenn Weldon, 03:41)

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Characterization, Acting & Emotional Resonance

[04:06 – 05:25]

• Rihanna Cruz hails “Pillion” as her “favorite movie…of the past 12 months.”

  • Praises nuanced performances: Skarsgård as the stoic dom with unexpected softness; Melling’s expressive, vulnerable Colin.
  • “It’s a rom com. It’s a coming of age movie…things you wouldn’t necessarily peg to the BDSM biker story. But it works really well tonally.” (04:08)
  • Highlights a transformative scene when Colin shaves his head, going “full submissive.”
  • “It made me laugh, it made me cry. What more is there to say? I love Pillion.” (05:24)

• Bob Mondello adds:

  • “It’s not a rom com, it’s a dom com.” (05:28)
  • Surprised by complexity and unpredictability; found both leads unexpectedly appealing.
  • Noted Harry Melling’s transformation from his “Harry Potter” roots to a “very endearing character.”

2. Normativity, Kink, and Structural Limits

[06:20 – 08:30]

• Glenn Weldon offers a more ambivalent take:
  • Finds the movie “very subdom 101… not the movie’s fault… it’s a function of drama.”
  • Positions Colin as an audience surrogate — from a “very basic normcore world with heteronormative sensibilities,” affecting how kink is represented.
  • Critique: The film never shows Colin truly enjoying his new world; always an undercurrent of “primness, this judgment… a boring, normcore attitude.”
  • “Someone doesn’t discover a kink and feel unfulfilled by it… the kink satisfies them… or else they wouldn’t do it.” (07:36)

3. Counterpoints: Domineering Relationships & Character Growth

[08:30 – 10:03]

• Bob Mondello counters:
  • Colin moves from “one domineering relationship [his mother] to another.”
  • “I thought this was a transference… he wants the things that he’s been used to.”
• Rihanna Cruz sees Colin’s arc as more nuanced:
  • “Colin’s wants and needs are more nuanced than ‘he’s unfulfilled in the kink world.’ The big transition… happens when his mom dies, and that kind of like flips his perspective… a wide scale shifting of the self and a lot of self doubt…” (09:10)

4. Intergenerational Tensions & Adaptation from Book

[10:03 – 11:37]

• Glenn Weldon notes:
  • The conflict with Colin’s “loving but disapproving” parents is a key theme, touching on generational divides in queer experience.
  • In the novel (“Box Hill”—set in the 1970s), the relationship lasts six years, whereas the film truncates this to months, possibly undercutting the sense of discovery.

5. Authenticity, Community, and Queerness

[13:41 – 15:00]

• Rihanna Cruz strongly connects to the film’s portrayal:
  • “It feels real to me... a real coming of age movie… I’m young, I’m in the community, I see people around me go through this. Like, it felt like Colin was a friend of mine.” (13:41)
  • Differentiates between “gay” and “queer” storytelling: “There’s a lot of content these days that is gay, but not queer. And I think there’s a defined distinction between the two… I think we need things like Pillion, because they’re more authentic…” (13:45)

6. Debate: Explicitness, Humor, and Audience Reception

[15:00 – 18:08]

• Glenn Weldon wonders if a more explicit cut would have been stronger, but notes the director worried audiences — especially straight audiences — would “laugh.”
  • “Who cares what straight audiences think?... this film does.”
  • He points out that comfort with laughter could have been a strength: “The guys in Tom of Finland drawings aren’t scowling… those guys are beaming. This film wasn’t interested in having a great time. It was interested in what would happen to this guy if he found himself in this place.” (15:37)
• Rihanna Cruz pushes back:
  • Argues the film’s restraint “reflects a sensitivity that’s at the heart of the movie,” protecting characters and audience. (16:14)
• Bob Mondello adds:
  • The director’s research showed that biker kink culture is “about community, a group of men having fun... less about sex.”
  • “He didn’t want to misdirect an audience… laughing at the kink would be misrepresenting the community.” (17:04)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “First of all, it’s not a rom com, it’s a dom com.” — Bob Mondello (05:28)
• “Guy discovers kink, has a great time — that’s not a story, right? That’s not drama. That is an eight minute video clip that I’m told one can find online…” — Glenn Weldon (06:43)
• “There’s a lot of content these days that is gay, but not queer… and I think we need things like Pillion, because they’re more authentic.” — Rihanna Cruz (13:41)
• “Someone doesn’t discover a kink and feel unfulfilled by it... or else they wouldn’t do it.” — Glenn Weldon (07:36)
• “He didn’t want to misdirect an audience… if the audience had been laughing at the kink, that would be misrepresenting what the community… was all about.” — Bob Mondello (17:04)
• “It felt like Colin was a friend of mine that I was watching on this journey. And I think that’s part of what makes this movie so special.” — Rihanna Cruz (14:17)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:08 — Film summary and clarification of “pillion”
• 04:06 — Rihanna Cruz’s rave review, character analysis
• 05:25 — Bob Mondello introduces the “dom com” joke and first reactions
• 06:20 — Glenn Weldon outlines critique of mainstream/“normcore” approach
• 08:30 — Bob and Rihanna offer counterarguments about relationships and trauma
• 10:03 — Glenn draws parallels to generational experiences and adaptation changes from the book
• 13:41 — Rihanna emphasizes authentic queerness and personal resonance
• 15:00 — Glenn, Rihanna, and Bob debate explicitness, audience laughter, and the director’s intentions

Tone and Dynamics

• Witty and intellectually curious, with the hosts gently ribbing each other but also digging deep into representation, emotional authenticity, and audience complicity.
• Respectfully contentious: Glenn Weldon is more critical, while Bob Mondello and Rihanna Cruz often defend the film’s choices — fostering rich, generational debate.

Summary Takeaway

The hosts’ exchange lays bare the complexities inherent in representing queerness, kink, and personal discovery on-screen. “Pillion” is seen by some as a fresh, authentic queer coming-of-age romance and by others as bounded by familiar storytelling tropes and a wariness of discomfort. The conversation itself is a microcosm of the evolving debates about what queer representation in pop culture can and should be—thoughtful, reflective, and, above all, alive to many readings.

End Note:
Greater detail, timestamps, and quotes provide an accessible yet thorough account for listeners or non-listeners alike. The hosts invite further opinions, true to PCHH’s community spirit.