Netflix has cancelled its hit drama series Boots following a blistering statement from the Pentagon, which accused the streaming giant of producing 'woke garbage'. The show, based on Greg Cope White's 2015 memoir The Pink Marine, follows a closeted teenager who enlists in the US Marine Corps in the 1990s.
Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said: 'Under president Trump and secretary [Pete] Hegseth, the US military is getting back to restoring the warrior ethos. 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.' He added that Netflix 'consistently produces and feeds woke garbage to their audience and children'.
The show had been praised by critics, with The Guardian's Stuart Heritage calling it 'incredibly powerful' and The Hollywood Reporter noting it was 'critical of the military’s 1990s-era anti-gay policies' yet 'also respectful of the military in many ways'. Lead actor Miles Heizer, who is gay, said the show's relevance to current events was 'upsetting'.
The cancellation follows a broader backlash against Netflix from right-wing figures, including Elon Musk, who urged users to cancel subscriptions over a transgender character in the animated series Dead End: Paranormal Park. Netflix remains the market leader in streaming with 301.6 million paid users worldwide.
The Pentagon's criticism comes amid controversy over Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth's order to remove the name of gay activist Harvey Milk from a US Navy ship, a move described by screenwriter Dustin Lance Black as 'small and petty'. The Pentagon is also facing a revolt from journalists over new policies that would limit reporting.
