15 romantic gay movies perfect for date nights & where to watch them

These romantic movies set the perfect mood for a romantic date night!

The perfect movie pick can make or break a date night. The only problem with these gay romantic films is that you’ll actually want to watch all of them until the very end. But don’t worry. There’s still plenty of time to chill later. Here are 15 perfect date night picks!

1. Red, White & Royal Blue

Red, White & Royal Blue is an unfairly R-rated Amazon movie that tells the story of international love between the President's son and the Prince of England. It's based on a novel of the same name by Casey McQuiston and stars Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine as the leads, a pairing we still wish would have become manifested in real life.

Where to watch: Prime Video

2. Love, Simon

Back in 2005, Brokeback Mountain became the first major Hollywood film that centered on gay love, but Love, Simon was the first one to focus on a gay teen in 2018. It stars Nick Robinson as the 17-year-old Simon Spier, and this sweet and uplifting coming out story has received numerous praise for dealing with topics like coming out on your own and the ramifications of someone else outing you.

Where to watch: Fubo, FXNow

3. The Thing About Harry

Fans of the formulaic rom-com plots can check out Peter Paige's 2020 movie The Thing About Harry about former enemies turned lovers. Credited as the first outright gay rom-com, it follows Sam (Jake Borelli) and Harry (Niko Terho) as former high school rivals who reunite in adulthood. They've both come out of the closet when they reconnect, and their emotional reunion also because a warm and lighthearted romance.

Where to watch: Fubo, Freeform

4. Stranger By the Lake

Who doesn't like a little darkness and a bunch of erect penises in their romance flicks? If that sounds like you, check out the French film L'Iconnu du lac, or Stranger By the Lake. This romance is also a psycho-sexual thriller in it, so take that for what it is, but also know there's a lot of sex. This sex is also unsimulated, and since it takes place on a nude beach and centers around the fun and dangers of cruising, it almost feels like you're watching a scripted OnlyFans video.

Where to watch: Kanopy

5. The Way He Looks

The Way He Looks is a 2014 Brazilian coming-of-age romantic film that follows Leo, a blind high school student, and Gabriel, a new student at school. Leo’s best friend Giovana is interested in Gabriel, but Leo and Gabriel slowly become closer. The Way He Looks won the Teddy Award for the best LGBT-themed feature, and the FIPRESCI Prize for the best feature in the Panorama section. The film also has a 91 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Where to watch: Kanopy

6. Boys

Jongens, translated as Boys, is a 2014 film from the Netherlands. The film follows Sieger, a fifteen-year-old boy who lives with his widowed father and his brother. Sieger, along with two other boys — Tom and Marc — are chosen to represent their local athletics team at a national championship relay. Marc and Sieger begin a secret relationship, with Sieger insisting he’s not gay. Over the course of the film, Sieger learns to accept his sexual orientation. (Spoilers ahead: If you want to plan a double feature, pair Boys with The Way He Looks. Both romantic coming-of-age films end with cute couples riding away together on bikes.)

Where to watch: Prime Video, Roku, Kanopy

7. Weekend

Weekend is an award winning and critically acclaimed film with a 95 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes that Roger Ebert called “a smart, sensitive, perceptive film.” The film follows two men, Russell and Glen, who start a sexual relationship the week before Glen plans to leave the country.

Where to watch: AMC+, The Criterion Channel, Kanopy, Mubi, PlutoTV

8. 'God's Own Country' 

Johnny (Josh O’Connor) is hard on the outside, disinclined to be vulnerable, and the labor of caring for his family’s farm and his ailing father seems to be taking a toll on him emotionally. The arrival of Gheorghe (Alec Secareanu), a Romanian migrant worker whose presence is to lend an extra hand, shakes up Johnny’s life. Though Johnny sleeps with men occasionally, he discards them easily. But Gheorghe’s presence is different for Johnny; for Johnny, Gheorghe represents the complexity of masculinity, that it does not have to be defined by hardness, meanness, and power. That masculinity can be soft, caring, gentle, tender, and compassionate. That’s how director Francis Lee approaches the film, textural and tactile in its emotional and sexual moments. For God’s Own Country, queerness is of the earth.

Where to watch: AMC+, Hoopla, Kanopy

9. Boy Culture

Boy Culture is a 2006 film adapted from Matthew Rettenmund’s 1995 novel of the same name. The film follows an escort who describes his romantic relationships with his two roommates and an older client. It won Best Screenplay at Outfest in Los Angeles.

Where to watch: Dekkoo

10. Big Eden

Big Eden is a romantic comedy that follows Henry Hart, a successful gay New York artist who returns to his rural Montana hometown to care for his grandfather. Henry is forced to confront his unresolved feelings toward his high school friend Dean, while being completely oblivious to Pike’s feelings toward him. The film won awards at several LGBT film festivals, including Outfest, San Francisco International Lesbian & Gay Film Festival, and Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival.

Where to watch: Prime Video, Roku, Tubi, Kanopy

11. North Sea Texas

North Sea Texas is a 2011 coming-of-age Flemish drama that follows Pim, a teen boy who lives with his troubled mother, and falls in love with his best friend Gino. The film received positive critical reviews, and has an 81 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Where to watch: Vudu, Tubi

12. Rag Tag

Rag Tag is a British-Nigerian drama that premiered at the 2006 San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival. The film follows two childhood friends, Raymond (known to his friends as Rag) and Tagbo (or Tag for short), who are reunited after losing touch for years, and take their relationship to the next level.

Where to watch: Tubi, Kanopy

13. In the Grayscale

In the Grayscale is a 2015 Chilean drama that follows Bruno, an architect who has separated from his wife and is starting to explore his bisexuality. Bruno meets Fer, an out gay history teacher to whom he has a strong attraction, while working on a public monument in Santiago.

Where to watch: Roku, Tubi

14. Pit Stop

Pit Stop is a 2013 American film that follows two gay men in a small town in Texas. They begin to build a relationship through their interactions at the local gas station. Pit Stop won the Texas Grand Jury Prize at the 2013 Dallas International Film Festival.

Where to watch: Prime Video, Hulu, Roku, Kanopy

15. Beginners

Beginners is a 2010 romantic comedy-drama following Oliver, who is reflecting on the life and death of his father Hal. The film is based on the true-life coming out of writer and director Mike Mills’ father at age 75. The film is filled with flashbacks of recently out Hal exploring his life as an openly gay man, and enjoying his relationship with Andy, his much younger lover.

Where to watch: Rent on VOD