Cuffs and Collars

Murray Bartlett and Kumail Nanjiani are Hot as Hell in the First “Welcome to Chippendales” Trailer

Welcome to Chippendales, the upcoming Hulu true crime miniseries about the famous all-male stripping troupe, has released its first trailer. You read that right: true crime. Kumail Nanjiani stars at the Chippendales founder, a rags-to-riches immigrant who found himself at the center of a murder plot.

The real-life Chippendales started in 1979 as the first all-male strip show. Aside from the naked men, Chippendales became known for the bow ties and shirt cuffs dancers performed in. But as most audiences have been distracted by the aforementioned naked men over the years, few know the history behind Chippendales’s sordid origins.

Hulu is bringing that tale to light in an eight-part miniseries. According to the official synopsis: “Welcome to Chippendales tells the outrageous story of Somen ‘Steve’ Banerjee (Nanjiani), an Indian immigrant who became the unlikely founder of the world’s greatest male-stripping empire—and let nothing stand in his way in the process.”

In the trailer, we see Banerjee ascend quickly from humble origins as a gas station clerk to become a wealthy entrepreneur. Nearly as quickly, Banerjee’s life takes a dark turn as he clashes with his choreographer, Nick De Noia (played by Murray Bartlett). The final shot is a logo featuring the classic Chippendales bow tie, now dripping with blood.

The series is created by Pam & Tommy’s Robert Siegel. Other stars include Annaleigh Ashford as Irene, Dan Stevens as Paul Snider, Juliette Lewis as Denise, Quentin Plair as Otis, Robin de Jesús as Ray Colon, Spencer Boldman as Lance McCrae, and Andrew Rannells in an unspecified role.

In a First Look from Vanity Fair, Bartlett discussed De Noia’s portrayal, saying, “There is this trope of the tragic gay character who never finds happiness and dies in the end; I was very aware of not playing into that. We had a chance to explore Nick’s sexuality in a way that was interesting and three-dimensional and doesn’t make him a tragic figure in that way.”

Welcome to Chippendales will be available for streaming on Hulu November 22.

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