The 20 best LGBTQ+ holiday movies

What’s Cooking is one of the rare films which actually focuses on Thanksgiving, one of those holidays which somehow often gets left out of the holiday movie glut. This is the quintessential holiday movie, focusing as it does on four different families who each come together to celebrate and confront life’s challenges along the way. Of particular note is the lesbian couple, Rachel and Carla, played by Kyra Sedgwick and Julianna Margulies, who are both superb in their roles. It’s one of those films which deftly balances its dramatic and comedic elements, and it perfectly captures the nature of complicated family dynamics. 

Fran Drescher has long embraced the fact that she is a gay icon. Look no further than her appearance in The Christmas Setup to see why she has been blessed with this title. Drescher is perfectly cast as Kate Spencer, who tries to set up her son, Hugo, with his boyhood crush, Patrick. This Christmas movie has all that anyone could ask for in a holiday romantic comedy, including a tremendous choice. Patrick has to decide whether to pursue his love or his career and as a result, it casts a holiday spell that no one can resist. 

Though there haven’t been nearly as many Thanksgiving movies as there are Christmas movies, one exception is Lez Bomb. Like so many other holiday-themed holiday films, Lez Bomb focuses on a lesbian, Lauren, who brings her girlfriend, Hailey, home for the holiday, even though she isn’t out to her family. However, some mistaken identity ensues, and chaos follows soon after. Sometimes, the film’s reach outpaces its grasp, but it is still filled with a lot of heart and a lot of laughs, and it’s a reminder that there’s still a lot of room for holiday movies to embrace LGBTQ+ storylines and characters. 

Hallmark and Netflix aren’t the only networks getting into the LGBTQ+ Christmas movie business. Lifetime also began introducing these kinds of stories into their holiday programming, including the fun adventure A Christmas to Treasure. This holiday treat focuses on Austin and Everett, who discover feelings for one another after they come back together at the house once owned by an elderly neighbor. There are quite a few plot points to keep track of in this movie, but the slowly-smoldering relationship between the two male leads is a treat to watch, and the movie also gives both of them their compelling backstory.

Family traditions are at the heart of The Christmas House, which focuses on a family that comes together during the holiday season. Of course, numerous secrets are going on behind the scenes, and while the stakes aren’t particularly high, they feel that way within the story's context. Particularly notable is the film’s inclusion of a gay male couple as one of the central groups of characters. The film is sweet, charming, and fun, and it was yet another example that Hallmark was willing to put its money where its mouth was in terms of creating entertainment that spoke to everyone.

The prodigal son returning home is a trope almost as old as romance itself, but that doesn’t make it any less pleasurable when it turns up in a holiday movie like Dashing in December. This time, the prodigal son is Wyatt, whose efforts to convince his mother to sell her ranch hit an unexpected bump when he starts falling in love with ranch hand Heath. The film’s brilliance, like so many other similar offerings, is that it knows exactly what audiences expect from a film like this one, and it provides them in spades. It’s pitch-perfect from beginning to end.

The Holiday Sitter might not seem like the type of movie that’s going to make history – featuring a meet-cute between two beautiful and charming leads — but it was actually the first time that a Hallmark movie focused on a gay couple. Despite its history-making trappings, the movie is filled with the tropes and story beats one would expect from a Hallmark holiday offering. What’s more, its leads are just perfect together, and from the moment Sam and Jason meet, the audience can’t wait for them both to realize that they are just what the other has wanted all along.

Friends, love, and a small town all come together in the Netflix original Let It Snow, based on the novel of the same name. However, unlike the book, this one features an original gay love story, this time between Dorrie and cheerleader Kerry. Of course, like any couple, they have to go through their fair share of difficulties, particularly since Kerry isn’t initially out. Though the film is geared toward young adults, there’s more than enough here for older audiences, who will welcome the chance to experience the unique power of first love during the Christmas season.

If one plot shows up repeatedly in Christmas movies, it’s the need to save some important location, whether a struggling inn or a piece of family property. As the title of Christmas at the Ranch implies, this time, it’s a horse ranch owned by the main character Haley’s grandmother. Once she returns to help save the place, she falls for farmhand Kate. There’s much to enjoy here for fans of both the romantic comedy and the Christmas movie, and there’s still a remarkable amount of power in seeing a queer love story that actually has a happy ending.

Based on the heartbreaking memoir by Michael Ausiello, Spoiler Alert follows the romance between Michael (played by Jim Parsons) and Kit (played by Ben Aldridge). The two have their ups and downs but band together once Kit is diagnosed with terminal cancer. It’s a beautiful, heartbreaking film, and several important scenes unfold as the two men share Christmases. Parsons and Aldridge give stirring and heartfelt performances, allowing the viewer to see inside a relationship in all of its complexities. What’s more, Sally Field appears as Kit’s loving but frequently nosy mother, Marilyn. It’s the type of film designed to tug at the heartstrings. 

It’s a tale as old as time: a gay person comes back to their hometown, where they once again find themselves falling for the person they left behind. In the film Merry & Gay, the former role belongs to Becca, a Broadway actor who returns to her hometown and reconnects with a former flame, Sam. There are complications, of course, but there’s also quite a lot of chemistry between stars Dia Frampton and Andi Rene Christensen. As a special bonus, the film also includes several trans and nonbinary actors, including Christensen (who is nonbinary). It’s an LGBTQ+ Christmas movie with a little bit of something for everyone.

While not everyone might be a fan of Chris Columbus’ film adaptation of the beloved musical Rent,  it still has enough heart to make up for whatever glitches occurred in the translation from the stage to the screen. It focuses on a group of friends — several of whom are queer — as they bond over poverty, the struggles of being HIV positive, and the Christmas season. Some might raise a skeptical eyebrow at the casting of several members of the original Broadway cast, but there’s also a great deal of joy to be had in seeing the likes of Idina Menzel, Jesse L. Martin, and Anthony Rapp reunite, and “Seasons of Love” remains one of the essential Christmas anthems.

Tangerine is often left out of discussions of great Christmas movies, but it’s important to remember that the events take place on Christmas Eve. At the heart of the film is the complicated and messy friendship between trans sex workers Sin-Dee Rella and Alexandra, the former of whom discovers upon getting out of jail that her boyfriend and pimp has been cheating on her. It’s that rare film that holds its comic and dramatic elements in perfect tension, even as it shines a fascinating light on the lives of those who are frequently shunted to the sidelines of society.

Directed by Todd Haynes and based on Patricia Highsmith’s novel The Price of Salt, Carol  follows Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara) and Carol Aird (Cate Blanchett) after they have a chance meeting at a department store during the Christmas season. It’s not long before the two of them have begun a passionate affair, one which will have dramatic consequences for both of their lives. Their love plays out against the background of the repression of the middle of the 20th century, and Haynes perfectly captures the look and feel of the period. There’s also astonishing chemistry between Blanchett and Mara, who both give the best performances of their careers. 

With Under the Christmas Tree, Lifetime made its very first lesbian Christmas movie. Its story fits all of the patterns one would expect, focusing on Charlie, who travels to rural Maine to find a Christmas tree for the state capital, where she soon has a romance with Alma, who is taking over her parents’ Christmas business. Though there are a few speed bumps on their road to love, Under the Christmas Tree ensures that the audience is never in doubt about where the romance will end up. The stakes might not be very high in this movie, but that’s just what one expects and desires in holiday entertainment.

Hallmark has long been the leader in providing family-friendly holiday entertainment, and they have also taken the lead in expanding what that means. Offerings like Christmas on Cherry Lane show there is much room in this space for LGBTQ+ stories. This particular film focuses on several different families, one of whom is the couple Mike and Zain (played by Jonathan Bennett and Vincent Rodriguez III), who will meet their new foster daughter. It’s a heartwarming story; one made all the better by the obvious chemistry between Bennett and Rodriguez, who were clearly born to play leading men in a romantic comedy.

The cheekily titled Make the Yuletide Gay is one of those delightful indie LGBTQ+ films that emerged throughout the aughts. Released in 2009, it focuses on Gunn and Nathan, the former of whom isn’t open about his sexuality to his family, even as he’s in a relationship with the latter. Hijinks predictably ensue when they both end up at Gunn’s parents' house. It’s a very sweet and charming film, even if it is also a bit rough around the edges. Moreover, there are some very funny parts, and characters get the happy endings they so clearly deserve.

Belying its title, Happiest Season  is one of those romantic Christmas comedies with more than a little sadness. Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis star as Abby and Harper, the latter of whom hasn’t come out to her conservative parents. When they go home for the holidays, secrets are brought out into the open, and their relationship endures quite a lot of strain. Though there’s more than enough romance and comedy to satisfy rom-com fans, Happiest Season also deserves a lot of credit for not shying away from the pernicious power of the closest and how it can destroy familial and romantic relationships. 

Though straight couples have long had more than their fair share of Christmas romantic comedies, it’s only recently that LGBTQ+ people have gotten the same. One of the sweetest and most charming of these is Netflix’s Single All the Way, focusing on Peter, who brings his best friend Nick home for the holidays, where they pretend to be boyfriends. However, things get complicated when they start getting feelings for one another. There’s strong chemistry between leads Michael Urie and Philemon Chambers, and, as a bonus, the film also features memorable performances from gay icons Kathy Najimy and Jennifer Coolidge.

Though the LGBTQ+ holiday movie may seem like a thoroughly modern phenomenon, it has surprisingly deep roots. One of the most notable precursors of the genre as it currently exists is the 1971 film Some of my Best Friends Are…, which takes place on Christmas Eve and focuses on several gay men and lesbians at the Blue Jay Bar. To be sure, the film does sometimes stray into the maudlin and the sentimental, and it can’t quite shake off the influence of the sad gay trope. Even so, there’s something remarkable about this movie, and it’s a reminder of how far on-screen LGBTQ+ representation has come in the intervening decades.