2025 Volume 25 Issue 1 Pages 121-136
Thailand currently holds a prominent position in Asia as a leading content provider of BL dramas. From 2012 to 2023, the number of Thai BL dramas surged from just 1 to 64. The primary reason for this dramatic rise in popularity is the growing number of BL fans. This paper examines the characteristics, behaviors, perceptions of Thai Boys’ Love (BL) drama audiences, and their relationships with socio-demographic attributes. The researcher conducted a questionnaire survey with 258 Thai BL drama viewers between January and April 2023.
The findings indicate that the typical Thai BL drama audience consists of single females aged 18–35 without children, who are either students or office workers. They tend to watch Thai BL dramas alone for 1–3 hours per week, primarily via subscription-based applications or YouTube channels. Most have been exposed to BL drama content through social media for over two years. Their main reasons for watching BL dramas are the engaging storylines and the actors. The audience perceives BL drama narratives as both fictional and reflective of reality.
In Thailand, BL dramas are commonly referred to as “Y dramas.” Most respondents understand the meaning of “Y” and express joy over the popularity of Thai BL dramas in Japan. However, they do not feel a strong connection between Thai BL dramas and Japanese culture. The audience believes that Thai BL dramas contribute to fostering acceptance of sexual diversity in Thai society. Respondents frequently discuss their BL drama-watching habits with others and believe their families do not hold negative views about this interest. Additionally, the audience considers Thai BL dramas important, expressing a desire to continue watching them in the future and recommending them to others.
Based on these findings, Japanese BL culture was first introduced to Thailand through manga in the 1990s. However, in the 2020s, Thai BL dramas underwent a process of localization (often referred to as “Thai-nization”), ultimately gaining global popularity as a distinctively Thai form of “Y culture.”
