12 LGBTQ+ Summer Movies We Can't Wait to Watch in 2023

These queer summer movies look terrific!

There’s little we love more than going to a nice, air-conditioned movie theater in the summer to catch a great, gay flick. As Nicole Kidman wisely said, “somehow, heartbreak feels good in a place like this,” so we know whether we’re watching a musical, a drama, a comedy, or a romance, we’ll have a wonderful time.

Here are some of the queer movies coming out this summer that we cannot wait to see.

Monica - May 12

Trace Lysette and Patricia Clarkson star in this Oscar-hopeful drama about a trans woman returning home to care for her ailing mother who she hasn’t seen since she was kicked out for coming out. Lysette delivers a career best performance — and one of the most powerful we’ve seen all year.

The Little Mermaid - May 26

Out director Rob Marshall (Chicago) directs this live-action adaptation of the classic Disney animated film. Aside from featuring one of the most trans-girl-adjacent Disney Princesses in Ariel (she wants bottom surgery to be like the other girls), Urusla was based on iconic drag queens like Divine.

Blue Jean - June 9

This British drama starring Rose McEwen comes from director Georgia Oakley. It follows a lesbian gym teacher in 1988 England who is forced to live a double life as Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government is about to pass a new anti-LGBTQ+ law.

The Flash - June 16

Embattled star Ezra Miller stars as The Flash in this multiversal DC project. It also stars Keirsy Clemons, Sasha Calle, Michael Shannon, and Michael Keaton. With The Flash and his love interest, Iris West, both played by out actors, this is one of the queerer casts for a superhero movie.

Every Body - June 30

This documentary explores the real lives of intersex people. It follows three individuals: actor and screenwriter River Gallo (the/them), Ph.D. student Sean Saifa Wall (he/him), and political consultant Alicia Roth Weigel (she/they), who have come out as their authentic, intersex selves.

Joy Ride - July 7

This hilarious comedy brings some of our queer Asian-American favs together for a road trip movie we can’t wait to see. When Audrey (Ashley Park) goes to Asia for a business trip, she enlists the aid of her friend Lolo (Sherry Cola), her college-friend-turned-Chinese-soap-star Kat (Stephanie Hsu), and Lolo’s eccentric cousin Deadeye (Sabrina Wu) to help her find her birth parents.

Theater Camp - July 14

We can’t wait for this upcoming musical comedy starring Ben Platt, Molly Gordon, and Noah Galvin, and also co-written by Platt and Galvin and co-directed by Gordon and Nick Lieberman. It follows “Amos and Rebecca-Diane – lifelong best friends and drama instructors at a rundown camp in upstate New York. When clueless tech-bro Troy (Jimmy Tatro) arrives to run the property (into the ground), Amos, Rebecca-Diane and production manager Glenn band together with the staff and students to stage a masterpiece, and keep their beloved summer camp afloat.”

Barbie - July 21

She’s everything. Perhaps the movie we are most looking forward to this year is Greta Gerwig’s Barbie. It stars Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken who travel to the real world together. It also features Kingsley Ben-Adir, Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, and Scott Evans as Ken, and Hari Nef, Issa Rae, Kate McKinnon, Dua Lipa, Emma Mackey, Ana Cruz Kayne, Sharon Rooney, Alexandra Shipp, and Nicola Coughlan as Barbie.

Talk to Me - July 28

Talk to Me is the debut feature film from Australian twins RackaRacka, also known as Danny and Michael Phillippou. It follows a group of friends who become obsessed with an embalmed hand that allows them to conjure spirits during a game.

Passages - August 4

This is a French romance drama that debuted at the Sundance Film Festival. It stars Franz Rogowski and Ben Wishaw as Tomas and Martin, a long-time gay couple. When one of them has an affair with a woman (Adèle Exarchopoulos), it throws their relationship into a whirlwind.

Red, White and Royal Blue - August 11

This Prime original movie is adapted from the popular gay rom-com novel about the son of the President of the United States and a British Prince falling in love. It stars Nicholas Galatzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez, as well as Uma Thurman, Sarah Shahi, Stephen Fry, Polo Marin, Rachel Hilson, and Ellie Bamber.

Nimona - Summer

This animated film, which was adapted from the graphic novel of the same name by She-Ra creator N.D. Stevenson, doesn't have a release date yet, but it is expected to come out on Netflix this summer. It follows a falsely accused supervillain and the young shapeshifting girl who joins him in his fight against the people who framed him. It stars Riz Ahmed, Eugene Lee Yang, Chloe Grace Moretz, RuPaul Charles, Indya Moore, and Julio Torres.