Amazon Prime Video: The best LGBT+ content available on the streaming platform including inspiring documentaries
Amazon Prime is packed full of incredible LGBT+ content to enjoy
Amazon Prime Video is home to hundreds of LGBT+ themed movies, TV programmes and other fantastic content.
Viewers can stream hours of worth of films, shows and documentaries focusing on LGBT+ people as part of an Amazon Prime Video subscription.
This includes inspiring documentaries about groups and individuals during the AIDS crisis, in the often cis male-dominated world of sport and those leading the way in the fashion industry.
There are also plenty of shows to binge-watch, including drama series and addictive reality shows as well as wildly-popular films like Carol and Call Me By Your Name.
If you’re already signed up to Prime Video then you’re good to go, but if you’re yet to join then you can sign up for a 30-day free trial and test out the platform’s LGBT+ content and beyond.
Once your free trial is over you’ll pay £7.99 per month or £79.99 per year, unless you cancel it then you won’t pay a penny. To find out more go to the Amazon Prime Video page here.
Below we’ve selected just a handful of the LGBT+ content available on the streaming platform to get you started.
Steelers
The documentary follows three central characters involved in the Steelers team. (YouTube)
Available on Prime Video from 16 April is Steelers, a documentary on the world’s first gay and inclusive rugby club – the King’s Cross Steelers. It follows the team as they compete against 60 other LGBT+ clubs across the world, focusing on three key figures involved in the team including gay female coach Nic Evans. The other two are Simon Jones, who is dealing with recently coming out as a gay man and also Andrew McDowell, a drag artist who inspires others to be their authentic selves.
It marks the directorial debut from former Steelers player Eammon Ashton-Atkinson and will be exclusively available to stream on Prime Video after being selected to screen at a number of high profile film festivals including BFI Flare.
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything!
To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything features loads of iconic cameos. (YouTube)
This cult 90s favourite follows three New York City drag queens who embark on a road trip to Los Angeles to compete in a pageant, carrying an autographed photo of Julie Newmar on their journey. The film stars Wesley Snipes, Patrick Swayze and John Leguizamo but the best part is the many cameos in the film which includes RuPaul, Lady Bunny, Naomi Campbell, Candis Cayne and Miss Coco Peru to name a few.
It also has an iconic soundtrack that features Cyndi Lauper, Chaka Kahn, Patti LaBelle, Crystal Waters and The Commodores and the film itself is still referenced in pop culture today, most notably on Drag Race.
Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton’s Cafeteria
Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton’s Cafeteria follows the 1966 riots in San Francisco. (YouTube)
If after laughing out loud at To Wong Foo you want to watch a slice of American LGBT+ history, then you can stream Screaming Queens on Prime Video. This documentary tells the forgotten story of the first collective act of militant resistance to the social oppression of queer people in the United States. It took place in 1966, three years before the Stonewall Riots, at a late night cafeteria in San Francisco, with drag queens and trans sex workers fighting back after becoming infuriated with the abuse they faced on a daily basis.
To stream this powerful documentary go to Amazon Prime Video.
The Sons of Tennessee Williams
Another documentary on Prime Video is The Sons of Tennessee Williams.
Another piece of American LGBT+ history available to stream on Prime Video is The Sons of Tennessee Williams. The documentary weaves together archival footage with contemporary interviews and tells the story of the New Orleans’ gay Mardi Gras across five decades. It features drag royalty and uncovers a glittering civil rights revolution as the gay Mardi Gras scene helped cause gay liberation in the south of the United States.
Becks
Tony Award winner Lena Hall stars in Becks. (YouTube)
Becks follows a musician who moves back to her childhood home in St. Louis after a crushing breakup with her long time girlfriend. While performing for tips at a local tavern and struggling to reconnect with her ultra-Catholic mother, she strikes up a unique friendship with the wife of an old nemesis. It stars Tony Award winner Lena Hall alongside Mena Suvari (American Beauty) and queer musician Hayley Kiyoko.
It’s based on the real life of singer-songwriter Alyssa Robbins and received highly positive reviews from critics upon its release in 2017.
Suspiciously Large Woman
Suspiciously Large Woman is the stand-up special from Bob the Drag Queen. (YouTube)
This stand-up special is from Bob the Drag Queen, season eight winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race. The hilarious queen returns to her home state of Georgia, purse first, to share her thoughts on fame, fashion, sex, politics and white people.
The one hour special is proof why Bob snatched the crown during her season with ease and is one of a number of Drag Race themed films on Amazon Prime Video. Fans can also watch Drag Becomes Him, a documentary following Jinkx Monsoon from working class boy to drag superstar and Gays in Prison which features Latrice Royale who reveals her own experiences in jail and explores the stories of other LGBT+ prisoners who often face discrimination.
Summer of ’85
Summer of ’85 follows the story of two teenagers in Normandy. (YouTube)
Summer of ’85 follows two teenagers, Alex and David, with the latter saving Alex when his boat capsizes off the coast of Normandy. Following this heroic rescue, Alex believes he has met the friend of his dreams, but it might be a friendship that only lasts one summer as other people begin to get involved. The French-language film is set against the backdrop of the stunning coast and is partly based on the 1982 novel Dance on My Grave by Aidan Chambers.
The film is a great two-hour escape to sunny Europe, being young and free and you can stream it on Amazon Prime Video.
Carol
The hugely popular lesbian drama Carol is available to stream as part of an Amazon Prime Video subscription. It stars Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara who play an older woman going through a difficult divorce and an aspiring female photographer respectively. Set in New York City during the early 1950s, the film has also been considered as a modern Christmas classic as it takes place during the festive period.
It’s based on the novel The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith and it received critical acclaim upon its release with plenty of big award nominations for Blanchett and Mara.
Dating Amber
Dating Amber is set in mid-90s Ireland. (Amazon Prime Vide)
This heartwarming coming-of-age comedy follows to closeted teens Eddie and Amber who start dating to stop everyone from speculating about their sexuality at school. It’s set in mid-90s Ireland as Eddie plans to join the Irish military in order to prove his masculinity to his father, while Amber is holding out until she can escape to London and open her own anarchist bookshop.
As the story unfolds the pair form a deep and profound friendship that is often unique for LGBT+ people and viewers will find relatable. To stream Dating Amber go to Amazon Prime Video.
After 82
After 82 is the untold story of the AIDS pandemic. (YouTube)
If you were a fan of recent drama It’s A Sin and want to hear from those who lived through it, then you can with this powerful documentary After 82, available to stream on Prime Video. It brings the untold personal stories of the AIDS crisis in the UK to the forefront as it looks back to the very early days of the pandemic when there were no medications and a positive HIV test meant almost certain death.
Many of the people who feature in this documentary have never spoken openly to the media about those traumatic early days of the pandemic, including Jonathan Blake who has lived with the virus for over 30 years. It also commemorates those lost to AIDS and celebrates those who supported people living with the virus in a story of human compassion, strength and resilience to ensure these voices are never forgotten.
To stream the documentary go to Amazon Prime Video.
Quiet Heroes
Quiet Heroes follows two women, Dr. Kristen Ries and Maggie Snyder, PA-C who teamed up to help those abandoned. (YouTube)
Another documentary which focuses on the AIDS crisis is Quiet Heroes. This film heads to Salt Lake City in Utah to the Mormon Church, where patients received little support from and were cast out by their communities. But two women, Dr. Kristen Ries and Maggie Snyder, PA-C teamed up with an order of Catholic nuns to create a safe haven to help these patients who were abandoned and living amidst a sea of hate and fear, when no other doctors in Utah would even see AIDS patients. To stream the documentary head to Amazon Prime Video.
Modern Love
Andrew Scott stars in series one of Modern Love on Prime Video. (YouTube)
This anthology series stars Anne Hathaway, Dev Patel and Tina Fey and focuses on a different relationship in each episode. This includes one starring Fleabag’s hot priest Andrew Scott. He plays Tobin, a gay man who is about adopt with his partner Andy. The pair are matched with an expecting mother who is both nomadic and homeless. She moves into their New York City home as they all try to navigate the upcoming changes in each of their lives.
Plus it was recently announced that openly gay actors Isaac Powell and James Scully will star in an episode in series two, which is expected to be written and directed by Andrew Rannells, best known for Prom and Girls.
You can sign up to Amazon Prime Video to stream series one and get ready for series two, due for release this year.
Do I Sound Gay?
The documentary Do I Sound Gay? follows David Thorpe who confronts his anxiety around his voice. (YouTube)
This documentary comes from David Thorpe who wants to confront his anxiety about “sounding gay” and embarks on a journey to explore the origins of the stereotype of the gay voice. As part of this he visits two speech therapists to evaluate his condition and help him gain control of his speaking voice. He also enlists the perspectives of family, friends, strangers and famous faces including Margaret Cho, George Takei and David Sedaris and learns that many people – gay and straight – often wish for different voices.
To stream Do I Sound Gay? you can head to Amazon Prime Video here.
The Gospel According to André
This documentary chronicles the life of André Leon Talley. (YouTube)
This inspiring documentary The Gospel According to André chronicles the life and career of one of the fashion industry’s most influential icons, André Leon Talley. He began his career at Andy Warhol’s Factory in the 1970s before climbing the ranks of the New York fashion editorial world, eventually becoming an editor-at-large for Vogue magazine. The documentary sees him discuss his background in the south of America, growing up in the Church, being gay and black in the fashion industry and how all of this helped him become the powerhouse he is today.
It also features interviews with Anna Wintour, Marc Jacobs, Tom Ford, Valentino and Whoopi Goldberg and it’s available to stream on Prime Video.
Making the Cut
Making the Cut reunites Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn. (YouTube)
If you’re after more fashion-themed shows then you can stream the first season of Making the Cut which is a Prime Video exclusive. The reality competition series reunites Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn who take 12 established designers around the world from New York to Paris to Tokyo as they compete to become the next global fashion brand. Each week the winning looks are available to purchase on Amazon, with the eventual winner receiving one million dollars to invest in their brand. It’s recently been renewed for a second season, so you can get prepared and the stream the first now.
Also available on Prime Video is seasons four to ten of classic reality series Project Runway.
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