LGBTQ Netflix: 10 amazing films and shows to watch right now

Cue the infamous dun-dun. Grab the popcorn. Prepare to chill. Because Netflix has a whole library of LGBTQ favourites to enjoy. As streaming services vie for our attention, Netflix continues to cater for the LGBTQ community both on and off the screen. 

Whether it’s welcoming Elliot Page back to The Umbrella Academy or Heartstopper being there for Kit Connor’s coming out story, the streaming giant is there for us all. And not just those rainy nights when you don’t know what to watch.

If you’re ready, here are 10 of the best LGBTQ show and movies you can catch on Netflix right now.

Pray Away 

With the likes of Making a Murderer and Tiger King breaking records, we’ve become obsessed with Netflix documentaries. Pray Away doesn’t have a murder mystery at the centre, but instead, shows the devastating impact of conversion therapy, the scientifically-debunked practise of trying to change a person’s sexuality and/or gender identity – and the Exodus International movement. 

It follows the story of those who’ve since turned their back on the anti-gay message, with some harrowing interviews about their regret for pushing this rhetoric. A particular highlight is the story of Julie – a woman who once preached against the LGBTQ community for Exodus and now poses happily for photos with her wife.

It’s a Sin

Russell T Davies’ It’s a Sin is a time capsule to a tragic era of gay history that dramatises the HIV/AIDS crisis of the ‘80s. Olly Alexander is a star as the carefree Ritchie. Kudos to Omari Douglas and Lydia West for supporting roles in what’s arguably Davies’ best work.

When the BBC and ITV passed, It’s a Sin finally found a home on Channel 4. After having its episode count cut, that is. Sad when you think it’s more than a five-part drama with Olly Alexander from Years and Years. There’s a hilarious scene involving Margaret Thatcher and some tea. But rest assured, there won’t be a dry eye in the house when the credits roll. 

Kissing Game 

A queer zombie series? Sign us up. Called Boca Boca in its native Brazil, Kissing Game is like a modernised version of Skins… If everyone turned into zombies by smooching each other. After a wild party, teens across this quiet ranching town become infected with a mysterious illness. 

Like the sexual encounters of It Follows, Kissing Game is a clever commentary on teen promiscuity. However, it’s the unique take on the worn-out zombie genre that works so well. Package this with a pastel colour scheme means Kissing Game feels like Netflix’s answer to Euphoria. Sadly, there’s no news on season two.

Halston

As The Assassination of Gianni Versace (also on Netflix) proved, we love a campy biographical drama from Ryan Murphy. In Halston, Ewan McGregor plays the titular fashion designer as the latest gay icon to get Murphy’s biopic treatment. The Halston estate had its complaints. But as per all these things, take depictions with a pinch of pink salt. 

Despite Murphy telling Vogue McGregor was the “only choice” to play Halston, the latter faced criticism for playing gay. Look out for Rory Culkin playing Joel ‘Bat Nipples’ Schumacher. Oh, and Krysta Rodriguez doing her best Liza Minnelli in a full-blown rendition of ‘Liza with a Z’.

Heartstopper

There’s been a boom in coming-of-age stories on Netlifx. But while Sex Education hammers home the comedy, Heartstopper puts the heart in its name. For those who haven’t heard of it, Heartstopper follows the shy Charlie (Joe Locke) as he falls for a grunting jock called Nick (Kit Connor) at an all-boys school. 

More than just being the Charlie and Nick show, there’s Yasmin Finney’s Elle, who’s forced to move to an all-girls school after transitioning. There are also the troubles of Ben (Sebastian Croft) trying to come to terms with his sexuality. The series was such a hit, it’s already been renewed for seasons two and three. 

Call Me by Your Name

No list of LGBTQ Netflix movies would be complete without Call Me by Your Name. Rightly being nominated for four Academy Awards, we also get Timothée Chalamet’s breakout performance. Chalamet plays 17-year-old Elio, who falls for his father’s assistant, Oliver. (The latter played by Armie Hammer. Moving on swiftly…) 

Although there are some major swings away from André Aciman’s novel of the same name, Call Me by Your Name’s setting in 80s Italy makes for an aesthetically delicious backdrop. The movie is a fitting end to Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Desire’ trilogy and cemented itself in the LGBTQ history books with its final fireplace shot alone. 

Circus of Books 

A heterosexual Jewish couple might not be your stereotypical owners of a gay bookstore, but this mom-and-pop outfit has become synonymous with the gay scene in Los Angeles. Circus of Books highlights the unusual family of director Rachel Mason, with her parents running the bookstore that had “a gourmet selection of stuff for every pervert.”

Karen and Barry Mason are at the heart of the story, giving a fascinating account of the AIDS epidemic, FBI stings, and the gay porn industry changing over the decades. Even though the West Hollywood store closed in 2019 and is now Chi Chi LaRue’s Circus, Circus of Books’ legacy lives on. 

Alex Strangelove

The typical teen movie about trying to pop your cherry has been done to death, but with Alex Strangelove, we get an LGBTQ twist on the tired rom-com. Alex (Daniel Doheny) is poised to lose his virginity to best friend Claire (Madeline Weinstein), but when a handsome gay man joins the school, it becomes clear he’s hiding his true self. 

A lot of us have been there, so cue throwbacks to that to those awkward high school days. Even though it feels a little dated with Alex and Claire setting up their own YouTube channel, a similar vibe to Easy A will make you feel warm inside watching this meet-cute. 

A Secret Love 

Charting the 60-year romance of Pat Henschel and Terry Donahue, the tears will flow in A Secret Love. Meeting in the 1940s when Donahue played for the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, the documentary follows their love through the ages and the many decades they were forced to live a lie.

Picking up with the pair in their later years, their health is deteriorating and they have to decide whether to move into assisted living. Whether it’s the tragedy that Pat and Terry still refer to each other as “cousins,” or the fact Donahue died just a year before A Secret Love aired, you’ll need the tissues for this one. 

The Half of It 

With queer female rom-coms being in relatively short supply, Alice Wu’s The Half of It changes things up for Netflix. Leah Lewis excels as the bookish Ellie Chu, a fictionalised version of Wu as an Asian-American Lesbian.Ellie writes love letters to popular girl Aster (Alexxis Lemire) on behalf of Paul the jock (Daniel Diemer), but when these romantic wooings reveal her true feelings, Ellie gets pulled into a complicated love triangle. Despite being a modern retelling of 1897’s Cyrano de Bergerac, it’s more like a queer 500 Days of Summer.