10 most shocking gay sex scenes in movies & TV shows

The goop, the gag!

Even in 2024, it’s still not entirely common for LGBTQ+ characters to have their own stories, backgrounds, story arcs, and love interests. After so many decades of queer individuals being depicted as “sassy best friends/employees” or outright background characters, we are finally starting to see projects that actually explore the sexuality of LGBTQ+ people on television and film.

Because it’s taken so long for LGBTQ+ sex scenes to reach the mainstream, it’s still pretty shocking sometimes for a movie or show to even feature a sex scene involving queer characters – no matter how vanilla the scene turns out to be. In turn, we’ve also been lucky enough to get certain projects that really went all the way when it came to showcasing passionate, sexual, and even shocking queer stories… not just romantic ones.

Scroll through to check out some shocking and unexpected gay sex scenes featured in movies & TV shows!

Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) & Ennis (Heath Ledger) – ‘Brokeback Mountain’

Back in 2005, it was quite shocking to see two Hollywood heartthrobs like Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger going all the way when it came to the intimacy and sex scenes between their respective characters, Jack and Ennis, in Brokeback Mountain. Bonus “shocking” points for these two cowboys having sex inside a tent without any sort of lubricant involved!

Bobby (Billy Eichner) & Aaron (Luke Macfarlane) – ‘Bros’

Romantic comedies – even the straight ones – don’t always feature sex scenes. When they do feature any nudity or sexual interactions, it’s all very modest and mostly for comedic effect. While we did expect that Bobby (Billy Eichner) & Aaron (Luke Macfarlane) were gonna go all the way in Bros, it was pretty surprising to see just how many positions they explored in their big sex scene in the movie.

Cruz (Carloto Cotta) & Patrick (Manu Ríos) – ‘Élite’ Season 5

Patrick (Manu Ríos) was a whole ass mess ever since the character’s introduction to Élite. For starters, he basically got in the middle of the fan-favorite relationship between Omar (Omar Ayuso) and Ander (Arón Piper). In subsequent seasons, he got severely d*ck-matized by Iván (André Lamoglia), even though Iván was still interested in sleeping with other people. As revenge, Patrick ended up hooking up with Iván’s very own biological father, Cruz (Carloto Cotta). And we were pretty gagged, to say the least.

Hawkins (Matt Bomer) & Tim (Jonathan Bailey) – ‘Fellow Travelers’

Fellow Travelers was initially marketed as a love story between two queer men going through the very homophobic period of McCarthyism. But besides all the political intrigue, this Showtime series really goes all-in when it comes to the sex scenes between Hawkins (Matt Bomer) and Tim (Jonathan Bailey). From toe-sucking to dominant/submissive dynamics to several fetishes being explored, the gay sex scenes on this show were no joke.

Dex (Zane Phillips) & Luke (Matt Rogers) – ‘Fire Island’

The first act of Fire Island makes you think that Dex (Zane Phillips) is actively pursuing Noah (Joel Kim Booster). While most of Noah’s friends are fawning over Dex, it seems like he’s pretty set on getting with Noah. As the film progresses, however, Dex reveals himself to be quite an evil person, and has a shocking sex scene with Luke (Matt Rogers) that ends with a lot of drama for all the characters involved.

Monica (Trace Lysette) & a trucker (Bobby Easley) – ‘Monica’

The general storyline of Monica is the titular character, played by Trace Lysette, reconnecting with her family – specifically her mother, who is ill and experiencing memory loss. During the movie, Monica allows herself to take some time for dating and even goes out to a club to meet up with a potential suitor. Unfortunately, that guy never shows up, and she gets totally stood up. In the meantime, a trucker flirts with her all night at the bar. She shoots him down in the hopes that her actual date is still showing up, but upon realizing he’ll be a no-show, Monica surprisingly caves in and has amazing sex with that trucker… and it all goes down, you guessed it, inside his truck!

Oliver (Barry Keoghan) & Farleigh (Archie Madekwe) - ‘Saltburn’

In Saltburn, Oliver (Barry Keoghan) is desperately craving the approval of Felix (Jacob Elordi) in college. He then starts to also seek approval of Felix’s wealthy family, the Cattons, when he goes to spend the summer at their estate. But no matter how hard Oliver tries, he gets treated as persona non grata by Felix’s cousin, Farleigh (Archie Madekwe). Nonetheless, Oliver sneaks into Farleigh’s bedroom one night and has a shocking sex scene that completely shifts the dynamics between them. Well, at least for a while.

The cluster orgy – ‘Sense8’

Every queer person remembers exactly where they were when they first saw the famous “cluster orgy” scene on Sense8. To watch these eight incredibly gorgeous people all having sex with each other while being connected through this mental “cluster” that bonded them together… this was a top-notch queer sci-fi moment for TV history, let’s just say that.

Armond (Murray Bartlett) & Dillon (Lukas Gage) – ‘The White Lotus’ season 1

Armond (Murray Bartlett) spent the entire first season of The White Lotus being a very stressed-out and incredibly snarky manager of the White Lotus resort. He also bossed around a lot of his employees, particularly Dillon (Lukas Gage), which he also seemed to have a crush on. This was the first season of The White Lotus, so we definitely didn’t know yet just how explicit the show was willing to go. When a guest hotel opens the door to Armond’s office and finds him on his knees eating Dillon’s ass... that was a cultural reset if we’ve ever seen one.

Quentin (Tom Hollander) & Jack (Leo Woodall) – ‘The White Lotus’ Season 2

On The White Lotus season two, Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge) was led to believe that she met a wonderful group of gay friends led by Quentin (Tom Hollander). The group also included a much younger and very attractive guy, Jack (Leo Woodall), which Quentin said was his nephew. But while staying the night at a property with Quentin and his friends, Tanya literally walked into the scene of Jack topping Quentin in bed. We have to assume that the “nephew” label was an excuse to avoid calling Jack a sex worker, but it still gave fans the shocking sensation that this uncle and nephew might’ve just been having sex.