Can you believe it’s been ten whole years since DADDY dropped into our lives, kicked off its shoes, poured itself a glass of red wine, and unpacked a suitcase full of feelings?
The 2015 comedy-drama, DADDY, directed by Gerald McCullouch and based on Dan Via’s play, is officially a decade old—and yet, somehow, it still feels as fresh, awkward, and emotionally chaotic as ever. Honestly though, did it ever really leave?
RELATED: Full-On Daddy Mode: Colton Underwood is One Hot Dad
Let’s rewind to where it all started: Colin McCormack (played by Gerald McCullouch), a 40-something openly gay newspaper columnist with a taste for politics, sarcasm, and hot guys in their twenties. Colin’s not alone though—his best friend Stewart Wisniewski (Dan Via) lives right next door. Stewart’s a mostly closeted lawyer who’s basically in a marriage with Colin—just without the sex. They eat dinner together, share deep emotional convos, and know each other’s every quirk. You know the type: “We’re not dating, but if either of us dies, the other one inherits the dog.”
Enter Tee. Thaddeus “Tee” Bloom (Jaime Cepero), a 21-year-old journalism intern, breezes into Colin’s life with big dreams, a killer smile, and—let’s be real—major “twink meets trouble” energy. There’s instant chemistry. They flirt. They drink. They sleep together. It’s intense. It’s messy. It’s very gay. But just when you think this is your typical “daddy meets boy toy” scenario—BOOM. Plot twist. Tee drops the kind of news that makes you pause the movie and yell, “Wait, WHAT?!”
Turns out Tee isn’t just crushing on Colin… he’s also his biological son, the result of a sperm donation Colin made back in his college days. Cue the emotional spirals, the moral panic, and every single gay meme reaction face you can think of.
What makes DADDY stick, even ten years later, is that it’s more than just a twisty drama with wine-stained dialogue. It’s about intimacy in all its weird forms—romantic, platonic, and everything in between. It looks at how we form connections, how we crave closeness, and how sometimes the lines between desire and family get way too blurry. And yes, it also plays around with that very specific “daddy” phenomenon in the gay dating world (you know the one).
Originally a stage play that ran in NYC and LA, DADDY made the leap to film with help from a 2013 Kickstarter campaign. It’s the kind of indie queer passion project that only happened because the community rallied behind it—and thank God they did. Because even now, in an era where we’ve got more LGBTQ+ content than ever, DADDY still stands out as something bold, strange, and surprisingly heartfelt.
And now it’s streaming on Dekkoo, the premiere streaming service for gay men, just in case your memory needed refreshing. Or maybe you’re like us and never stopped thinking about it. Either way, it’s the perfect time to rewatch. Text your emotionally avoidant gay bestie, open a bottle of wine, and relive all the drama, longing, and uncomfortable conversations that made Daddy unforgettable.
Happy 10th, DADDY. You’re still inappropriate, emotional, and deeply iconic—and we wouldn’t have you any other way.