The Pentagon is taking aim at Netflix’s new LGBTQ military drama Boots, calling the series “woke garbage” that undermines the warrior ethos of the U.S. Armed Forces.
A week after the show’s debut, Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson issued a statement condemning the series — which is based on retired Marine Sgt. Greg Cope White’s memoir The Pink Marine — and produced by late World War II veteran Norman Lear.
“Under President Trump and Secretary Hegseth, the U.S. military is getting back to restoring the warrior ethos,” Wilson said in a statement released to various outlets. “Our standards across the board are elite, uniform, and sex neutral because the weight of a rucksack or a human being doesn’t care if you’re a man, a woman, gay, or straight.”
Wilson continued, “We will not compromise our standards to satisfy an ideological agenda, unlike Netflix whose leadership consistently produces and feeds woke garbage to their audience and children.”
What Boots Is About
Created by Andy Parker, Boots stars Miles Heizer as Cameron Cope, a closeted teenager in the 1990s who joins the Marine Corps alongside his best friend Ray McAffey (Liam Oh). The series is a fictionalized adaptation of Greg Cope White’s 2016 memoir, which was originally set in 1979, a time when gay Americans were banned from serving openly in the military.
Fallout Following Netflix Backlash
The Pentagon’s rebuke follows recent controversy surrounding Netflix and its creative talent. Elon Musk publicly canceled his Netflix subscription last month after the platform’s director of LGBTQ+ animated films, Hamish Steele, mocked Charlie Kirk’s assassination and called the conservative activist a “Nazi.” Musk called Steele a “groomer” in response.
This latest backlash adds to the growing criticism of Netflix’s direction, as political and cultural divisions spill into Hollywood and entertainment.
