These 6 LGBTQ+ holiday movies are a must-watch this Christmas

Holiday movies with LGBTQ+ characters or themes have become standard by this point. With Hallmark and streaming services releasing regular Christmas content, LGBTQ+ visibility has dramatically increased.

But you can watch only so many holiday specials before Santa arrives. With offerings ranging from hijinks to hookups, which ones should you choose?

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We’ve got you covered. These five fun holiday movies are your must-see offerings for the last few days of the season.

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Happiest Season

Fans of this landmark gay holiday comedy were divided over its premise: A young woman visiting her girlfriend’s family for Christmas is asked (at the last minute) to play straight because she’s not out to her family.

But a capable cast keeps the potentially painful plot lovingly fun, including butch-heartthrob Kristen Stewart, the wry Aubrey Plaza, and Schitt’s Creek co-creator Dan Levy as Stewart’s joke-cracking gay BFF. Together, the comedic cast keeps the film centered on its true message: reclaiming your spirit when loved ones fall short.

The Holiday Sitter

Hallmark’s first gay Christmas movie is trite but fun.

The Holiday Sitter stars out actor and reality show host Jonathan Bennett. He plays a gay guy who lives in New York City and has a big, important job and no time or interest in being married or having kids. But a week before Christmas, his sister and her husband ask him to babysit his niece and nephew somewhere in Small Town, U.S.A. while they pick up a newborn baby they are adopting. Meanwhile, there is a handsome gay named Jason (George Krissa) who lives across the street and loves kids. So, he offers to pay Jason a bazillion dollars to help him care for his niece and nephew for the week, and, of course, holiday love ensues.

The B**** Who Stole Christmas

RuPaul loves Christmas – she has made several Christmas albums – so it makes sense that she would have also starred in a Christmas movie.

The B**** Who Stole Christmas is about a workaholic fashion journalist assigned to cover the Winter Ball competition in a Christmas-obsessed town. The movie includes cameos from many Drag Race stars, including Michelle Visage, Peppermint, the hilarious Ross Matthews, Latrice Royale, and Victoria “Pork Chop” Parker, as well as some other queer favorites like Charo and Kim Petras.

Friends & Family Christmas

One year after the Hallmark Channel premiered The Holiday Sitter, its first-ever holiday rom-com centered on a gay couple, the network debuted another first: a festive flick about lesbian love.

The made-for-TV movie stars out actors Humberly González and Ali Liebert as a pair of big city workaholics (pretty much the description of the lead of every Hallmark holiday rom-com) who are set up on a blind date by their families. After agreeing to pretend to date to get their loved ones off their backs, the two ladies actually fall in love for real against the backdrop of a snowy, mistletoe-strewn winter wonderland.

Make The Yuletide Gay

This film features Adamo Ruggierio as Nathan, the out boyfriend of Gunn (Keith Jordan), who is still in the closet. Nathan surprises Gunn during the holidays in his small Wisconsin town, threatening his social standing with his friends and the life he has grown accustomed to with his family.

Shared Rooms

Shared Rooms is an intersecting plot of stories featuring gay men between Christmas and New Year’s – including one closeted man sharing a bed with his crush, a married couple welcoming an abandoned teenager into their home, and a holiday hookup that develops into something more. This one may be a rom-com at heart, but it’s definitely not a Hallmark movie.

Honorable Mention: Carol

Carol is a sumptuous, heart-rending romantic film set in 1950s New York City, a time when homosexuality was deeply taboo. It stars Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett as women desperate to be with one another in the face of a society determined to stop them at every opportunity. It also largely takes place at Christmas, making this brilliant miracle of a film the ultimate queer holiday movie.