The Gayt Christmas Ever: Insi 2020's Big, Queer Holiday Explosn

Contents:

• THE BT QUEER HOLIDAY MOVI TO MAKE THE YULETI GAY
• THE GAYT CHRISTMAS EVER: INSI 2020’S BIG, QUEER HOLIDAY EXPLOSN
• JONATHAN BENT WANTED TO CREATE A GAY UNCLE BUCK FOR THE HOLIDAY STER
• KEN HAS ALWAYS BEEN BARBIE’S GAY BT FRIEND—NOT HER BOYIEND
• 10 QUEER CHRISTMAS MOVI TO MAKE THE YULETI GAY
• 9 GAY-THEMED HOLIDAY MOVI
• 'LIKE A GAY DREAM E TE': NETFLIX'S FIRST GAY HOLIDAY ROM- 'SGLE ALL THE WAY' RELISH JOY
• THE LIFETIME GAY CHRISTMAS MOVIE TOTALLY BROKE ME—SO, YUP, IT WORKED

THE BT QUEER HOLIDAY MOVI TO MAKE THE YULETI GAY

Early the ntemporary queer holiday non, 2005’s The Fay Stone, which stars gay in Sarah Jsi Parker as a (shocker) snobby New Yorker spendg the holidays at her boyiend’s fay home, beme a queer h for s B-plot gay uple wh ambns to adopt a baby. That is, gay and lbian Christmas movi actually center queer people now — same-sex holiday revelers csh and fall love, break up, rega romance, and jt live the same celebratory December existence every heterosexual (or closeted) character has gotten for, well, ever.

Hallmark’s first-ever gay Christmas romance is a sparkly, trope-y film about the virtu of settlg down and startg a fay a glzy world where homophobia don’t exist.

Nearby, handsome sgle-gay-father-aspiree Jason (Gee Krissa) studi an adoptn pamphlet his ftively rated mansn while his dotg mom nsol him via phone om her home across the street.

THE GAYT CHRISTMAS EVER: INSI 2020’S BIG, QUEER HOLIDAY EXPLOSN

A hyperfaiar, perhaps way-too-overdone heteronormative plot flipped to be gay? Netflix’s first te gay Christmas movie (2019’s Let It Snow has a cute queer-teen subplot) follows plant daddy Peter (Michael Urie) as he heads home to New Hampshire wh his bt iend and pretend boyiend, Nick (Philemon Chambers), to avoid his mom’s (Kathy Najimy) naggg about his perpetual sgle stat. Lifetime’s first gay Christmas movie is a love story between (surprise!

The Bt Queer Holiday Movi to Make the Yuleti Gay.

Christmas 2020 is the gayt Christmas ever. This holiday season has gifted dienc wh four—y, four—gay Christmas roms: Hallmark’s The Christmas Hoe, Hulu’s Happit Season, Lifetime’s The Christmas Set-Up (December 12), and Paramount’s Dashg December (December 13). There have been more mastream gay holiday roms released 2020 than every other year rerd pop culture history bed.

JONATHAN BENT WANTED TO CREATE A GAY UNCLE BUCK FOR THE HOLIDAY STER

Gays didn’t jt startg lovg Christmas this year. “I thk when they said make the Yuleti gay, they meant , ” said Jonathan Bent, one half of the gay uple at the heart of Hallmark’s The Christmas Hoe. By featurg a married gay uple ont and center (Brad Harr plays Bent’s onscreen spoe), the film is a major step forward for the work.

'” The works—Hallmark, Lifetime, Paramount—fally donned their gay apparel, jtifyg s of passn for this historilly heteronormative holiday. Bee, honey, the gays have always been here for Christmas—even if Christmas hasn’t always been here for . “It’s so classic, so typil that the queer muni have often loved a lot of the stutns that have not necsarily loved back, ” said Ben Lewis, the other half of The Christmas Setup’s gay power uple, sharg a sentiment echoed by pretty much everyone else terviewed.

KEN HAS ALWAYS BEEN BARBIE’S GAY BT FRIEND—NOT HER BOYIEND

And so I thk for gay men, I thk even for Christmas enthiasts, I thk we’re chasg after that childhood fort and safety that maybe we missed at that time.

Victor Garber—a hero to a generatn of gay people thanks to his work on Broadway, Tanic, Alias, Legends of Tomorrow, and jt beg Victor Garber—played straight Happit Season as closeted Harper Caldwell’s uptight polician father.

10 QUEER CHRISTMAS MOVI TO MAKE THE YULETI GAY

I remember meetg a lot of gay kids when I was growg up who weren’t so happy about Christmas and, not unlike Happit Season, would have to go home and pretend [to be straight]. “Your hoe be this other thg for this season, ” said Lee, touchg upon many gay men’s reason for the season.

9 GAY-THEMED HOLIDAY MOVI

That seri—Holiday Home Makeover—serv a different purpose 2020’s avalanche of gay ntent. That show is hosted by an out gay man who sually refers to his partner ont of the straight fai he’s been tasked to make merry. Seeg a gay man openly talk his your same-sex partner at Christmas around strangers?

That’s a transformative notn for a lot of gay people. Even if gay dienc haven’t seen leral gay characters on screen, we still have our touchston.

Benjam Bradley lov Christmas Connecticut for gay in Barbara Stanwyck, and Na Wt returns to Whe Christmas every year thanks to the looks and stunts of Vera-Ellen and Rosemary Clooney. BenDeLaCreme realized as an adult that Christmas at Pee-wee’s Playhoe is “the gayt thg, ” part bee “Miss Yvonne is the bt Christmas drag queen anyone uld ever hope for.

'LIKE A GAY DREAM E TE': NETFLIX'S FIRST GAY HOLIDAY ROM- 'SGLE ALL THE WAY' RELISH JOY

Frank Oz, for example, is not a gay man, but somehow created Miss Piggy, who is the most inic, most nonil ‘gay’ character.

” While thkg aloud, Lewis realized why so many Christmas specials seem so low-key gay. “There is somethg very gay about puppetry and stop motn animatn, jt general. Particularly wh stop motn — to put that amount of pastakg tail, the amount of hand glterg that mt have gone to the makg of any one of those movi, is textbook gay.

“He’s this amazg bchy gay guy! All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Gay Leads. “I thk [Happit Season is] groundbreakg bee ’s an hont-to-god holiday-themed rom that is for queer people, by queer people, ” said Jkx Monsoon of Happit Season, Hulu’s star-studd, major stud gay holiday rom starrg Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis.

THE LIFETIME GAY CHRISTMAS MOVIE TOTALLY BROKE ME—SO, YUP, IT WORKED

Gay creators have been tryg to make history for a mute. That may be why he didn’t ially nsir makg Dashg December a gay romance—and then leapt at the chance to make this particular dream e te (a dream starrg out actors starrg Peter Porte and Juan Pablo Di Pace). ” This simple tweak opened up the entire story for Helgren, turng what was jt a uple sentenc of plot to a full-fledged screenplay that speaks to not only the holiday season, but to the specific experience of beg gay a small, ral muny.

By stg gay actors, the performers felt embolned to put their own experienc to their characters. The scene that mattered the most to Bent, and every sgle queer person watchg The Christmas Hoe at home, was Brandon and Jake’s kiss—y, a gay kiss on Hallmark. One of our art partment guys who’s gay me up to me and had tears his ey.

Ben Lewis felt pelled to make sure that his character’s emotnal arc Lifetime’s The Christmas Setup would ronate wh gay dienc.