Moonlit Starlight

On a busy film set, a young actor is hugging a cardboard standee of his idol and whispering compliments to it. Then someone yells cut. Welcome to Moonlit Starlight (คืนดาวพราวจันทร์), a Thai BL romantic comedy from Team 11 that turns the camera around and points it at the BL industry itself. Yes, it is a BL about making a BL, and I am already giggling.

JingJing, played by Keng Naruekom, was once one of the brightest new faces in BL dramas. Then came the wrap night of the very first project of his life. Someone framed him, he became the scapegoat for a scandal that shook the whole industry, and his dream fell apart. For more than two years he stayed out of sight while the gossip kept circling.

Now he wants back in. After yet another rejection call, his friend Kungten, played by Itim Kongkidakorn, turns up like a fairy godmother with an audition script for a big BL series from a major channel. Fate then plays its favourite joke. JingJing lands the lead opposite Prince Paris, played by Tim Takorn, the country's number one leading man and the idol JingJing has adored from afar. Prince has never done a BL role before.

On screen their chemistry burns so bright that everyone watching starts to wonder where the acting stops. Off screen sit the pressure of fame and the expectations of a fandom that ships hard. Then two faces from the past walk back in: Maprang, played by Cathreeya Bauwens, Prince's beloved long time screen partner, and Ryo, played by Piyawat Phongkanittanon, JingJing's former screen partner. Methis Anusassatitchai, Pittikorn Siripornsawan and Poom Tharit complete the cast as James, Mawin and Patrick.