WATCH: A closeted bodybuilder falls for his coach in Brock Yurich's deeply personal queer drama - Queerty

A drama titled Test follows Eddie, a troubled bodybuilder pursuing perfection while his interior collapses. Eddie faces repressed same-sex attraction, religious shame, an overbearing mother, secret relationships, and an over-reliance on performance enhancers. The story is designed to feel like an authentic look behind bodybuilding culture. The screenplay is written and starred by Brock Yurich, marking his first feature-length writing credit. Yurich has been developing the story for about a decade and describes independent filmmaking as a long, painful process. His own bodybuilding background reduces the need for major physical transformation, while the role demands intense emotional performance beneath the physique.

"So much so that he can barely cope with the emotional turmoil that comes from repressed same-sex attraction, religious shame, an overbearing mother, and secret relationships-not to mention an over-reliance on performance enhancers."

""I've always been fascinated by bodybuilding and the specific culture surrounding it," McConnell shares with Variety. "We designed Test to feel like an authentic peek behind the curtain. I found the character of Eddie to be so compelling-he is on a mission to perfect his exterior at the same time his interior is crumbling around him.""

"The film is a deeply personal one for Yurich, who reveals he's been mulling over its story for the past decade. The out actor made a name for himself with guest roles on hit shows (like Succession & The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) and as the lead of some hetero rom-coms (like The Boxer & The Butterfly), but Test marks his first feature-length screenplay."

""Making an independent film is a long painful process, but I knew the pain of giving up on it would be far greater," he admits to Variety. Given his own background as a bodybuilder, the role didn't require too much of a physical transformation (unless you count shaving off his signature 'stache and body hair), but it absolutely pushed him as a performer, showcasing a staggering depth of emotion beneath all that muscle."

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