9 Gay Movie Moments That Are So Subtle, They Might Not Register On Your Gaydar

Representation ≠ 5 seconds out of an hour-and-a-half film 🙄

When it comes to LGBTQ+ representation in movies, it's time we get more than alluded allegories and subtle hints at queerness. Queer characters deserve to make more than just cameos in mainstream movies.

@netflixlat / Via giphy.com

Here's why I'm mad: it was speculated that Disney-Pixar's kid-friendly version of Call Me By Your Name, Luca, was going to represent a coming-out story of sorts, but the animated film is so ambiguous it could be about differences of any kind.

Disney/Pixar

Yes, it features two boys who hug and hold hands briefly in a tearful goodbye, but their bond can't be described as anything more than platonic. So much for progress, right?

So, just to further prove my point, here are 9 queer movie moments that are SO laughably small and subtle, they shouldn't even get brownie points for representation.

@tkyle / Via giphy.com

Let's get started:

1. Beauty & the Beast (2017)

Disney

Ok, this one is better than most. LeFou was clearly pining for Gaston, but we only got to see him be "explicitly gay" in the final ballroom scene where you might notice him dancing with another man. Maybe the upcoming prequel series will give us the gay moments we demand?

2. Finding Dory (2016)

Disney/Pixar

An unnamed lesbian couple briefly appears at the aquarium, and they aren't just in the background. Like, we can actually see their faces for a moment. This is what we get for representation in a movie where the main character is voiced by the world's most famous lesbian? A few seconds of screen time? Cool.

3. Moxie (2021)

Netflix

If white feminism were a movie, it would be Moxie. Two queer characters, Lucy and Amaya, share a kiss at a concert and... never really interact romantically again? Where was their love story going?! We need to know! Honestly, they should have been the main characters... 

4. Thunder Force (2021)

Netflix

Aside from the grandma's high hopes for the main characters to be a couple, the actual gay moment of a girl with two dads was clearly just sprinkled in for fun ~inclusivity~ bonus points. It's so pointed, especially with how the little girl addresses her parents as "dads."

5. How To Train Your Dragon 2 (2010)

DreamWorks

Gobber the Belch supposedly hints at being gay while explaining why he has never married. In the words of Edward Cullen, "Say it. Say it out loud!"

6. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Disney/Marvel Studios

A grieving man named Bobby (played by one of the film's co-directors, Joe Russo) talks about his date with another man during a support group with Steve Rogers. It's amazing that he even has a name. That's how low the bar is. 

7. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

Disney/Lucasfilm, Ltd.

This blink-and-you'll-miss-it kiss between two women was edited out in some foreign countries, but you kinda have to be looking for it to catch it anyway. When I saw this in theaters, I didn't know whether to cheer for the inclusivity or laugh out loud because of how incredibly small the moment was.

8. Zootopia (2016)

Disney

Judy Hopp's next door neighbors, Bucky and Pronk, could be brothers who live together but maybe they could be lovers? Nothing explicitly tells you they're gay in the movie itself, but one point for the latter possibility is that the credits feature them with the same hyphenated last name.

9. And lastly, Toy Story 4 (2019)

Disney/Pixar

These two background moms were ~somewhat~  visible enough to outrage the One Million Moms organization. We only see them drop off and pick up their kid, but the "damage" to young audiences who might ask, "Why are there two mommies?" is apparently done. I could barely catch it, so sorry, Karen, but I doubt your toddler has the visual acuity to spot this "atrocity." 

So, those are my 9 super-subtle queer movie moments you probably missed, but let me know if I missed any. Drop the movie moment in the comments, and let's all be collectively annoyed about it!

Logo / Via giphy.com