Having Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell film a rom-com in Australia might just be the perfect cover for the perfect ruse by one of the country’s biggest and most beloved brands.
While everyone has been losing their minds about the stars’ new R-rated flick – which they filmed across Sydney earlier this year – behind-the-scenes photos point to a much bigger story.
Bigger than whether or not the pair hooked during filming. Or maybe that is all part of the ploy to distract us from asking the real questions: what’s with the Bunnings umbrellas?
Pictures of Sydney on the set of Anyone But You have cemented a theory this journalist has long held: that Bunnings has somehow cut a deal with Hollywood to ensure their umbrellas feature on the sets of films filmed in Australia.
It sounds far-fetched until you see the smorgasbord of evidence this investigator has compiled.
Sydney Sweeney is just the latest in a long line of Hollywood talent to put their paws (or get their assistant’s paws) on the iconic green umbrella while working on their blockbusters Down Under.
Just before Sydney was Ryan Gosling in his action-packed movieThe Fall Guy – an adaptation of a 1980s television series about a crime-fighting stuntman, of the same name.
Pictures obtained by a News Corp photographer showed Gosling, clad in a red bomber jacket standing in a crowd of crew members.
Innocent enough. Completely Hollywood normal.
But what was being held above their heads on the dreary Sydney day? Not one, not two, but three Bunnings golf umbrellas.
And before The Fall Guy, similar Bunnings brolly-mania swept the set of Thor: Love and Thunder set, with a number of the deep green shields popped open at the Little Bay set in Sydney.
Now, admittedly, this one is closer to home on all fronts. Titular star Chris Hemsworth is one of our favourite Aussie acting exports, and the film’s New Zealand director Taika Waititi is no doubt familiar with the cultural significance of Aussie icons like Bunnings Warehouse.
It is entirely possible Waititi or Hemsworth brought their own hammer-branded umbrellas to the set.
And the conspiracy runs so deep that even the production security were spotted using them.
As if that wasn’t enough evidence. I give you more umbrella appearances: Cate Blanchett wigged up, holding a cigarette while an assistant holds the umbrella; Chris Hemsworth (again) wigged up in 2016 as Thor seen near a green umbrella.
Ryan Gosling himself was even seen dashing across The Fall Guy set holding an umbrella on his own.
And Sydney Sweeney was papped again on the set of her next film Eden, a survival thriller shooting on the Gold Coast, directed by Ron Howard.
Still unconvinced a deal had been struck between Bunnings and Hollywood heavyweights, this reporter went to a trusted source with inside knowledge of film sets.
An industry insider – who has worked on a number of local film and television projects, including action blockbuster Mad Max: Furiosa which was filmed in NSW in 2022 – was asked about the allegations against Bunnings and Hollywood and denied any kind of deal.
In leaked texts seen (and sent) by news.com.au, the insider said Bunnings umbrellas were “not sponsored” to appear on-set.
“It’s literally just whatever umbrellas they can find,” the source said.
“Bunnings umbrellas are good because they’re sturdy and big and cheap.”
The insider is, admittedly, not wrong. The deep green Bunnings golf umbrella is $12 a pop, according to the website, with a 137cm wide canopy “for extra rain protection”.
It also features “ventilation holes” and a “non-slip handle” and claims to fold “neatly for easy carrying and storage”.
But as the warehouse giant says itself: “Lowest prices are just the beginning” … of a deeper plot.
News.com.au grilled Bunnings about this brazen racket, whether or not the brand was in cahoots with Tinseltown.
In response to in-depth questions, a Bunnings spokesperson denied there was any kind of umbrella sponsorship, collaboration or quid pro quo with movie-makers.
The spokesperson said in a statement there was “no undercover … partnership” between the hardware giant and Hollywood.
But, they added, “we can take no credit for the popularity of the umbrellas, this very much happens organically”.
It’s all a little convenient for me. Consider yourself on close watch, Bunnings. And now Australia has its eyes peeled too.