Ken Dance Battle – Barbie (2023)
Barbie redefined the summer blockbuster for a new generation in 2023. Everybody had an opinion about Greta Gerwig’s expression of feminism, toxic masculinity, and the struggle for both genders to see eye-to-eye.
The movie was also a big hit with gay men, even if there aren’t any tangibly LGBTQ+ scenes in the film. The dance battle with all of the Kens, led by Ryan Gosling’s already iconic performance, was littered with queer-coded moments though. Dozens of hot guys singing and dancing while holding hands? Sign us up!
Mr. Farouk and Mr. Ajayi Share a Bedroom – Heartstopper (2022-present)
From its pastel graphics to the uplifting messages hidden behind even the most serious storylines, Heartstopper is a cone of cotton candy for the queer soul. The G-rated take on coming-of-age as an LGBTQ youth in Great Britain sometimes receives internet backlash for supposedly sugar-coating the difficulty of finding same-sex love as a teenager, but the Netflix series understands not everyone’s journey is the same.
With a myriad of queer romances to look up to, the burgeoning one between teachers Mr. Farouk (Nima Telaghani) and Mr. Ajayi (Fisayo Akinade) during a season 2 school trip showed late bloomers watching from home that there is no reason to shame themselves for not finding love during your school years. It takes some people until their 20s, 30, or 40s to express queer pride to its fullest extent, and it’s just as beautiful!
Kevin and Black in the Diner – Moonlight (2016)
Moonlight is the most awarded LGBTQ-focused film in the history of the medium. Following the upbringing and early adulthood of a traumatized queer Black man, Barry Jenkins’ magnum opus fleshed out the multiple facets of a gay person of color better than almost anything previously seen before or since on the big screen.
The most tender, intimate moment in the story comes during adult Chiron’s (Trevante Rhodes) reunion at the diner with his past lover and confidant, Kevin (André Holland). When Barbara Lewis’ “Hello Stranger” starts playing in the background, Jenkins sets the scene for a quaint yet gigantic moment of passionate nostalgia in which each man needs few words to express what they used to mean to one another.
