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2024 was a great year for queer cinema!
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What an incredible year for queer film its been!
In 2024, we've had great movies from great new filmmakers, new classics from some of our favs, and all sorts of exciting films in between! There's been queer romance, horror, crime, comedy, musicals, and more.
If you want to know our top ten from this year, we struggled to whittle the list down, because so many great movies were released this year, but we made a list. Still, there were so many great queer movies this year, we want to make a list with a lot more than ten.
Scroll through to check out the LGBTQ-inclusive movies released in 2024 that we loved to watch!
Good Grief
Best known for Schitt’s Creek, Dan Levy made his directorial debut in Netflix’s Good Grief starring alongside Ruth Negga, Himesh Patel, and Luke Evans in this story of a man who goes on a trip to Paris with his best friends after his husband dies.
He Went That Way
He Went That Way follows a celebrity animal handler named Jim (Zachary Quinto) who gives a ride to a handsome stranger named Bobby (Jacob Elordi), who happens to be a young serial killer. The film is based on a true story.
Mean Girls
The Plastics are back in this 2024 musical reboot of Mean Girls, starring lesbian actress Reneé Rapp (as Regina George) and bisexual actress Auli'i Cravalho as Janis. Despite the impossibly high standards, this movie was a total blast.
Read our review, and watch Mean Girlsstreaming on Paramount+.
I Saw the TV Glow
Jane Schoenbrun’s new horror film, I Saw the TV Glow, premiered at Sundance and is one of the most critically acclaimed horror movies of the year! It follows Owen and Maddie, two friends who bond over a shared love for a teen supernatural show, only to realize that the line between reality and the show is blurring.
Read our review and watch streaming on Max.
Stress Positions
John Early stars in Theda Hammel's hilarious and caustic quarantine comedy. In the movie, the character of Terry is stressed out and trying to stay safe during the pandemic in his ex-husband’s home while caring for his nephew, who just suffered an injury.
Layla
Layla is a new movie from filmmaker Amrou Al-Kadhi that follows a struggling Arab drag queen — the titular character — falling in love for the first time and going through a deeply transformative experience during that period of time.
Read our review. Layla is currently unavailable to stream.
Sebastian
Image: Sundance Institute
In Sebastian, Max (played by Ruaridh Mollica) is an aspiring writer who starts making money as a sex worker living in London while doing research for his novel.
Available to rent on Amazon.
Will & Harper
Will Ferrell stars in the documentary Will & Harper, which is about the actor and comedian finding out that his close friend of 30 years, Harper Steele, is coming out as a trans woman. As a result, Ferrell and Steele go on a cross-country road trip as they seek a better understanding of how their long-time friendship can evolve. It's a heartwarming and hilarious look into friendship and loving yourself.
In the Summers
Based on queer filmmaker Alessandra Lacorazza Samudio's real life, In the Summers is the story of two sisters learning how to deal with their complex father every time that they visit him during the summer.
Available to rent on YouTube.
Desire Lines
Image: Sundance Institute
Kieran (Theo Germaine) is an Iranian-American trans man who travels back in time to understand his sexual identity in this erotic and dreamlike film.
Not currently available for streaming.
Drive-Away Dolls
Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke's Drive-Away Dolls is an off-kilter crime comedy focusing on Jamie (Margaret Qualley), who just broke up with her girlfriend, going on a road trip with her best friend Marian (Geraldine Viswanathan).
Read our review and stream the movie on Prime Video.
Problemista
Written by, directed by, and starring Julio Torres (alongside a terrifying Tilda Swinton), Problemista is brilliant comedy about the American dream, immigration, being difficult, and finding connections.
Love Lies Bleeding
Lou (Kristen Stewart) runs a small-town gym and Jackie (Katy O’Brian) is a queer bodybuilder looking for a home in Rose Glass’s brutal and sexy crime thriller Love Lies Bleeding.
Housekeeping For Beginners
This Macedonian film won the Queer Lion at the 2023 Venice Film Festival. It’s about a woman who never aspired to be a mother, but finds herself raising her girlfriends’ two daughters.
Challengers
In Challengers, Zendaya (Tashi Duncan) Josh O’Connor (Patrick), and Mike Faist (Art Donaldson) play a titillating love triangle in this Luca Guadagnino film about the world of tennis. It completely changed the way we look at sports and sex.
Read our review and stream on Prime Video.
Joker: Folie a Deux
Listen to Lady Gaga Singing as Harley Quinn on 'Joker 2' SetWhile Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn in a musical was something we were very hyped for this year, the sequel to the Oscar-winning The Joker was a big disappointment.
Wicked: Part One
Cynthia Erivo soared as Elphaba and Ariana Grande is perfect as Glinda in this brilliant movie adaptation of the classic Broadway musical.
Queer
Luca Guadagnino's second film this year was the Daniel-Craig-starring Queer, based on the book by William S. Burroughs and following a boozey expat living in Mexico City in the 1950s who meets a younger man and forms a relationship with him.
My Old Ass
My Old AssCourtesy of Sundance InstituteThis charming and quirky coming-of-age tale debuted at the Sundance Film Festival, and stars Maisy Stella as a queer 18-year-old who takes mushrooms and meets the 39-year-old version of herself played by Aubrey Plaza.
Cuckoo
First Look at Hunter Schafer in 'Cuckoo'Hunter Schafer, Dan Stevens, and Jessica Henwick star in this horror film about a girl who is forced to move with her family to a European resort where things are not what they seem.
FRIDA
FRIDACourtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Archivo Manuel Alvarez Bravo, S.C."An intimately raw and magical journey through the life, mind, and heart of iconic artist Frida Kahlo. Told through her own words for the very first time — drawn from her diary, revealing letters, essays, and print interviews — and brought vividly to life by lyrical animation inspired by her unforgettable artwork."
The People's Joker
Vera Drew's bonkers film is a mix of a trans coming-of-age story and the Joker's origin, with a critique of comedy culture thrown in. It's unlike any comic book movie you've ever seen!
Emilia Pérez
This brilliant musical follows a lawyer (Zoe Saldaña) who is hired to help a Mexican cartel leader find a doctor who will help her transition into the woman she's always wanted to be. It also stars Selena Gomez and the stunning Karla Sofía Gascón (as Emilia).
Fancy Dance
Lily Gladstone stars in Erica Tremblay's wonderful film about a woman taking care of her 13-year-old niece and trying to get her to a powwow after the girl's mom went missing.
Read our review and stream on Apple TV+.
Femme
Femme follows Jules, a drag queen who is attacked by a homophobic man. Later, out of drag, he forms a relationship with the same man and looks to get revenge.
