Spoiler Alert (film)

Spoiler Alert is a 2022 American romantic drama film starring Jim Parsons and Ben Aldridge as two lovers, one who watches the other's final months before his death from terminal cancer. The film, based on the 2017 memoir Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies by Michael Ausiello, is directed by Michael Showalter and written by David Marshall Grant and Dan Savage. Parsons plays Ausiello, and Aldridge plays his lover Kit Cowan who dies of cancer.
Spoiler Alert was released in the United States on December 2, 2022, by Focus Features.
== Plot ==
The film opens with the death of Kit Cowan in the arms of his husband, Michael Ausiello, following his 11-month battle with terminal cancer. The story, told through Michael, details their 14-year relationship leading up to Kit's death.
In 2001, Michael, a writer for TV Guide, is brought to a gay nightclub by his best friend in Manhattan. There, he meets Kit, a photographer, and the two instantly connect. As they begin dating, Michael struggles with his insecurities of being formerly overweight and not being attractive enough for Kit. Kit reveals that he had an affair with a man at the gym. They both admit their fears of being in a long-term relationship since neither of them had been in one before, but they decide to continue dating each other. During their first Christmas together, Kit gives Michael his own closet space at his apartment, inviting Michael to live with him. 
In 2002, Kit gets an appendectomy. His parents, Bob and Marilyn, come to Manhattan. Not out to them, Kit asks Michael to "clean" the apartment of anything gay and all evidence of their relationship. Upon returning to Kit's place, Marilyn grows suspicious of Michael. After she incessantly interrogates the two men, Kit comes out to his parents and reveals that Michael is his boyfriend. While initially upset that Kit could not admit this to her, Marilyn is accepting and welcomes Michael. Michael and Kit continue their relationship and get a townhouse together. During their second Christmas, Michael invites Kit to lie under the Christmas tree with him as he did when he was a child and explains it was always a fantasy of his to do it every year with his partner.
In 2013, Michael and Kit develop complications in their relationship. Their sex-life is non-existent, Michael spends too much time with his company TVLine and has developed an alcohol addiction; Kit struggles with a marijuana addiction and infidelity, and Michael suspects he is having an affair with his coworker, Sebastian. Their therapist believes they now resent each other but still love each other enough not to end it, and suggests that they separate to reassess their feelings. Kit moves out, but the two remain in their relationship. During their Christmas party, Kit begins showing signs of health concerns and learns he has a tumor in his rectum. Michael, still traumatized by his mother's death from cancer, has Kit move back in.
In 2014, Michael and Kit learn from their oncologist that Kit has a rare form of stage-4 neuroendocrine cancer, and Kit begins chemotherapy. Over the next 11 months, Michael assists Kit with battling cancer. The chemotherapy doesn't work, and Kit begins radiation therapy. Seemingly in better health, Kit goes on a vacation to Ocean City with Michael, Bob and Marilyn. Michael and Kit reconcile and have sex. Kit's health worsens, and their oncologist reveals that the radiation treatment has failed and Kit has six weeks left. That night, Michael apologizes for not letting Kit know how beautiful he was due to his fears of being left for a more attractive man. Kit apologizes to Michael for having an affair with Sebastian. After Michael smokes marijuana with Kit for the first time, Kit proposes to Michael and they marry the next day. Michael and Kit spend one more Christmas together, during which Michael has a dream of himself and Kit growing old and lying under the Christmas tree. 
In 2015, Kit is taken into the hospital. There, Michael allows Sebastian to say goodbye to Kit. As Kit is dying, Michael pretends it's a scene on a television show, with Kit getting up after the director cuts. Michael interviews Kit as if he were a departing actor whose character is being killed off. Kit expresses gratitude for his time on the show and is looking forward to the future. Michael asks Kit what he should do, and Kit replies that he will have to figure it out. Back in reality, Michael thanks Kit for giving him a family and tells him it's okay to go. Kit dies with Michael and his parents with him. Michael continues to be a part of Bob and Marilyn's lives after Kit's death. Michael prepares to leave New York for Los Angeles, and although he is nervous to start this new journey he remembers how brave he was to begin his adventure with Kit.
==Cast==
* Jim Parsons as Michael Ausiello
* Ben Aldridge as Kit Cowan
* Sally Field as Marilyn Cowan
* Bill Irwin as Bob
* Antoni Porowski as Sebastian
* Nikki M. James as Nina
* Jeffery Self as Nick
* Tara Summers as Mrs. Ausiello
* Shunori Ramanathan as Dr. Lucas
* Paco Lozano as Judge
==Production==
Production began in December 2018, when Jim Parsons signed on to produce and star in the film and Michael Showalter signed on to direct it. In July 2021, Ben Aldridge was cast as Kit Cowan. In September 2021, Sally Field joined the cast playing Kit's mother, Marilyn. Principal photography began in the fall in New York City.
==Release==
The film was released for a limited release by Focus Features on December 2, 2022, before releasing across the United States a week later on December 9, 2022.
===Home media===
Spoiler Alert was released on Digital HD from Amazon Video and iTunes on December 20, 2022.
==Reception==
=== Box office ===
The film made $679,690 from 789 theaters in its opening wide weekend, finishing in 10th.
=== Critical response ===
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 85% based on 84 reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The website's consensus reads, "It can be frustratingly uneven, but strong performances from a talented cast help Spoiler Alert stay on the right side of saccharine." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 61 out of 100 based on 22 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". PostTrak reported 91% of audience members gave the film a positive score.
==See also==
* Bros
* Fire Island
* LGBT culture in New York City
* List of LGBT people from New York City
* Pose
==References==
==External links==
* 
Category:2022 biographical drama films
Category:2022 LGBT-related films
Category:2022 romantic drama films
Category:2020s American films
Category:2020s English-language films
Category:American biographical drama films
Category:American LGBT-related films
Category:American romantic drama films
Category:Biographical films about LGBT people
Category:Dan Savage
Category:Films about cancer in the United States
Category:Films based on memoirs
Category:Focus Features films
Category:Gay-related films
Category:LGBT-related romantic drama films
Category:Romance films based on actual events