6th November 2023
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After observing the endless stream of edits of the new HBO show Heated Rivalry on TikTok, I found myself thinking about how mesmerised we, as a society, seem to be watching LGBTQ+ relationships on our TV’s. I then thought further about this and mentally observed how this phenomenon is not a modern cinematic revolution but something that has been in cinema and literature for a long time. The various shows and films produced in the last 50 years have received different acclaim from different groups of people, with some shows presenting and idealised innocent version of relationships and some films presenting a far more realistic, sadder tone to its relationships.
Firstly however, let’s talk about Heated Rivalry. Since its release on the 28th of November 2025, the majority of the western world has been on its knees for the enemies-to-lovers story of two professional ice hockey players; female, male, gay or straight, the world cannot wait to watch how their relationship progresses. The show has had insane success already with Harper’s Bazaar listing it among its best LGBTQ+ show of all time after just two episodes (Laura Martin, 2026). The show highlights the long, gruelling aspect to love, as the two main characters spend 10 years avoiding each other and denying their sexualities, it also has a vast amount of rather graphic sex scenes, leading to the actors who play the characters to gather a large fan base. So, what does this tell us? Well, one main thing it reveals is how sex-obsessed we are, it is universally acknowledged that sex sells, and it has really worked with this show. It seems that the younger generations are not having as much sex as the generations before us were, highlighting the obsessive nature the fans of this show have with the intimate scenes. This is discussed by Isabelle Moreley, who explained “Whereas 55 percent of adults (ages 18-64) reported having sex weekly in 1990, that number has dropped to 33 percent in recent years. Young adults aged 18-24 are particularly impacted. From 2020-2024, 24 percent of this group reported having no sex in the past month, which is double the number that reported sexlessness before 2010. Married people are having less sex, single people are having less sex, and each younger generation shows a trend of less sex.”. This further explains one aspect of the obsession with this particular show, as the sex scenes in it are such a key facet to the show and the character’s relationship. Another reason for the success of this show is due to the cultural impact it has had on unexpecting groups in society. The ‘closeted gay’ character is not a new one, it has been joked about and dramatized in film and tv since the 1990s, however what this show has done is present gay men finding love in a world that does not want them to. The male sporting world is infamous for not being accepting of gay men; what Heated Rivalry has done is allow for gay male sportsmen to be discussed in mainstream media. This will allow for many sportspeople of all gender and sexuality to feel more safe in coming out and still enjoying their sport. Once again, this presents why more and more people are becoming obsessed with shows that focus on gay characters, as the modern shows humanise LGBTQ+ people in a way that has not been previously done.
Another modern show that featured a male-male relationship is Heartstopper, originally a series of graphic novels by Alice Oseman; when this show first aired on Netflix in 2022, it too took the world by storm, and many people became utterly obsessed with the far more family friendly depiction of a teenage gay relationship. Similarly to Heated Rivalry it focused on a closeted character who played a sport, however in this instance they were not professional ice hockey players but played rugby for their school. Saying that, the minor differences do not take away from the fact that the basis of both of these shows are pretty similar: both have sports players not accepting homosexuality, both have an intense romantic plot and both have coming out scenes. This further leads me to question why both of these shows with similar base plots, have become so incredibly successful in recent years? Why do so many people identify with these characters and relationships even if they aren’t gay themselves? In the case of Heartstopper, the success is not due to intimate scenes or nudity unlike Heated Rivalry as it focuses on a young relationship, therefore it is a lot more innocent. This suggests that the success of both shows is not due to sex appeal, but more to the fact that people are watching something be so vastly mainstream that used to be so taboo and controversial. I also believe that people love both shows so much due to the idyllic way both relationships are presented; in both shows the gay relationships may have rocky patches throughout them, but they end up being almost overly happy with one another, especially in the case of Heartstopper. The sickly sweetness of the romance has lead people, including myself, to label these shows as unrealistic and completely artificial, as although both shows have had a huge cultural impact, they are not prized for their realism.
Contrastingly, there have been many realistic portrayals in recent years as well, namely Call me By Your Name, again originally a book by André Aciman but turned into a film in 2017. The film, directed by Luca Guadagnino, was extremely popular from its release, grossing $41.9 million, compared to its budget of $3.5 million (Gauri Goel, 2024). The story is set in the 1980s and depicts the relationship between Elio and Oliver in Northern Italy. The film presents the slow burning relationship against a backdrop of hazy summer days and an influx of eccentric yet intelligent characters. The two characters begin a relationship despite a large age gap and Oliver working with Elio’s father. This obviously shows how the character’s relationships has a controversial background to it, heavily juxtaposing the romance presented in the previous two shows. The film ultimately ends with Oliver leaving, then calling Elio to inform him that he is engaged, the ending scene and credits shows Elio (played by Timothee Chalamet) crying in front of the fireplace barely moving. This is obviously a far bleaker presentation of relationships when compared to Heated Rivalry or Heartstopper but in my opinion, it is also a more genuine depiction of gay relationships, especially in the 1980s. Call me By Your Name does not attempt to sugar coat anything and Guadagnino’s direction of the adapted book stresses the sadness behind the beauty; he uses the stunning backdrop as emotional camouflage, placing what could be quite a controversial story in front of so much tranquillity and beauty that we, as the audience, do see the love and romance in the characters, just not in such an explicit and up front way as presented in the modern shows. This toned down, perhaps pessimistic depiction of character’s did not halter the film’s success however, as after its release it has been proclaimed as a milestone in queer cinema history and was nominated for four Academy Awards, winning one for best adapted screen play (Jacob Slankard, 2024). The films tidal wave of success and acclaim produces the question as to why, when this film is so different compared to Heated Rivalry and Heartstopper is it still so successful?
Another film that had a vast wave of success is My Beautiful laundrette, written by Hanif Kureishi and directed by Stephen Frears. The film was released in 1985 and written for Channel 4, obtaining huge success after it’s release. The film details the life of people in south London during the Thatcher years, as we follow Omar who gets given a laundrette to run by his uncle, trusting his old friend and lover Johnny to help renovate it, the film remains a landmark in queer and British Asian cinema (Freya Elliot, 2025). Similarly to Call me by Your Name, the film has far more harsh and realistic tone when looking to it’s depictions of queer relationships, with the film showing how society reacts to gay interracial relationships as the characters of Omar and Johnny face racism and homophobia frequently throughout the film. Once again, the world became obsessed with the story, with the film being nominated for an Oscar and two BAFTAS. This further shows how much society is transfixed by these stories, as even in 1985, when this film was released, society was obsessed with watching these love stories play out in front of them. The date when My Beautiful Laundrette was released is important, as during the 1980s, homophobia was rife in society, Margaret Thatcher’s government was at war with the LGBT community, and the AIDS epidemic was labelled as the ‘gay plague’ (Peter Tatchell Foundation). Furthermore, the love story of an interracial gay couple being spread across the western world was and still Is a big deal, this film helped break down stereotypes, barriers and hatred for the gay community that was becoming normalised during this decade. This also gives an explanation as to why people were so obsessed with watching gay relationships at this time, as they were so controversial and taboo that a chance to watch one in the form of a film would have been exciting and provocative to a lot of people. This film and Call me by Your Name, both have more realistic and somewhat disheartening presentations of gay relationships, especially when looking to Heated Rivalry and Heartstopper. However, as previously mentioned, this did not compromise its success, all films and tv shows mentioned have had huge success and have caused society to talk about societal issues, which is hard to do in the form of a film or show.
In conclusion, all mentioned films and shows have had a huge impact on society, despite the differences in their characters and plots. I believe that we, as a society have a deep interest in watching these relationships and talking about them to each other. The basis of our interest comes from watching something be so public that used to be so forbidden, I mean homosexuality was not legalised until 1967 in the UK, therefore people see it as a novel thing for LGBTQ+ people and their relationships be on our televisions in our living rooms. Still now to this day there is push back against these shows which tells us that we still haven’t come far enough when it comes to homophobia in society, however the people who do not like it are still talking about it – they are still obsessed! The more people discuss these various shows and films the more normalised gay relationships will be and the easier it will be for people to come out (as seen with the revolution Heated Rivalry has had on the sporting world). Theres a certain demographic that watch each show/film, Heated Rivalry and Heartstopper share that demographic just as they share the same dramatized and, in my opinion, unrealistic representation of these relationships. The films that I’ve mentioned however, are far more real and have a more varied type of viewer. Nevertheless, what the success of the various shows/films tell us is that LGBTQ+ relationships are a large point of interest for so many different people and that more pieces of media should be made focusing on them as it causes important questions to be asked and answered.
Sources
Elliot, Freya, ‘The Romance and Resistance of My Beautiful Laundrette at 40’, National Science and Media Museum Blog, 2025
https://blog.scienceandmediamuseum.org.uk/the-romance-and-resistance-of-my-beautiful-laundrette-at-40/ [accessed 26 January 2026]
Goel, Gauri, ‘Call Me by Your Name — The Secret to Its Success’, Studiovity, 2024
https://blog.studiovity.com/call-me-by-your-name-the-secret-to-its-success/ [accessed 26 January 2026]
Martin, Laura, ‘“There’s Going to Be a Bandwagon”: After Heated Rivalry, Women Are Driving a Gay Erotic Boom on Screen’, BBC Culture, 19 January 2026
https://www.bbc.co.uk/culture/article/20260119-after-heated-rivalry-women-are-driving-a-gay-erotic-boom-on-screen [accessed 26 January 2026]
Morley, Isabelle, ‘Why We’re All Obsessed with “Heated Rivalry”’, Psychology Today, 2026
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/love-them-or-leave-them/202601/why-were-all-obsessed-with-heated-rivalry [accessed 24 January 2026]
Slankard, Jacob, ‘Call Me by Your Name’s Only Oscar Win Has an Entire Legacy Behind It’, Collider, 2024
https://collider.com/call-me-by-your-name-oscar-james-ivory/ [accessed 26 January 2026]
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