Sharanya Kumar
What do Heartstopper (2022), Young Royals (2021) and Red, White & Royal Blue (2023) have in common? Besides being charming narratives of queer love between a blond, golden-retriever type and his dark-haired boyfriend of Latino descent, these three stories unpack the complexities of coming out of the closet in their own lovely ways.
The final scene of Netflix’s Heartstopper Season 1 saw Nick Nelson (Kit Connor) coming out as bisexual to his mother (Olivia Colman). Buoyed by her loving acceptance of his sexuality, Season 2 kicks off with Nick gearing up to come out to everyone else in his life.
The show — whose third and final season just wrapped production — deals with a number of themes, from mental health issues to class conflict, but Wilhelm’s decision to come out is central to the narrative.
Queer royalty is also at the heart of Red, White & Royal Blue, The story follows Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez), the son of the US President who falls for Prince Henry of England (Nicholas Galitzine).
Coming out has traditionally been depicted not only as a difficult exercise, but also an isolating one. Take, for example, how Karan is forced to come out when his privacy is brutally violated, and the way his mother rejects him because he’s gay.