12 queer storylines edited out or scrapped in major movies

An overview of queer erasure in modern-day Hollywood.

We love it when mainstream movies include queer storylines. What we don't love as much is when movies do include queer storylines in the original script or filming, but then those storylines hit the cutting room floor instead of making the final cut.

Some blows hurt more than others. Some choices make some semblance of "sense" according to the filmmakers, but that doesn't always ease the pain when good queer-inclusive storylines get straightwashed.

Here are 12 major films that had a gay storyline at some point in production, but ultimately didn't make it into the final release...

'Love Actually'

One of the more popular films during the holidays is Love Actually, a 2003 British rom-com that chronicles nine different love stories, though none of them are LGBTQ+. 20 years later, however, we found out that wasn't totally true. In fact, filmmaker Richard Curtis admitted that he was "really sad" about the scenes from the film that showed the headmistress coming home to her terminally ill partner. It was one of two scenes cut from the film that not only would have developed Anne Reid's character, but given some much-needed representation for the time.

'Thor: Ragnarok' & 'The Marvels'

Okay, this one isn't specifically for just Thor: Ragnarok, but rather for the character Valkyrie (played by out actress Tessa Thompson). Marvel has left out a few queer scenes, including an alleged romance between Valkyrie and Captain Marvel in 2023's The Marvels. Prior to, Ragnarok director Taika Waititi admitted they should have left in a scene filmed with a woman leaving Valkyrie's apartment and kissing her to cement the canon of Valkyrie's bisexuality.

'Joy Ride'

Another film that almost but didn't quite have a sapphic love scene was Joy Ride. Two of the film's stars, Sabrina Wu and Stephanie Hsu, shed some light on a scene involving Kat (Hsu) and Lolo (Sherry Cola), who were meant to embark on a budding romance following a game of rock, paper, scissors. Unfortunately, the romance ultimately hit the cutting room floor, leaving us all heartbroken at what could have been.

'Star Trek Beyond'

It was big news when it was announced that Lt. Hikaru Sulu (John Cho) would be confirmed as gay in Star Trek Beyond, especially because out gay actor George Takei originated the role. However, Cho told Vulture that a scene featuring their daughter at the airport, in which the two husbands kissed, was ultimately left out of the final cut.

'James White'

Rapper Kid Cudi took on his second-ever film in James White, where there was a bit of a double whammy when it came to his sexuality. One hit came by cutting out the scene where his character, Nick, comes out. The other involves his kissing scenes, of which he noted he knew nothing about the scenes being removed until the film's premiere and wasn't exactly happy when he found out his character's sexuality had all but been muted.

'Scooby-Doo'

Off the bat, before we get too into this, there was some redemption involved with Scooby-Doo by allowing Velma to be a lesbian in the HBO Max show about the character. However, Sarah Michelle Gellar, who played Daphne in the live-action films, shocked us all when she said there was a kiss between the two women that ultimately hit the cutting room floor. She also insinuated that Fred, played by her real-life hubby Freddie Prinze Jr., may also be bisexual, but the scenes examining that all got cut, as well.

'Descendants 2'

Disney's Descendants franchise has expanded to five films, with a sixth installment set to arrive next year. Back in 2017, when the second film came out, fans were disappointed to learn that a gay kiss between two male characters was cut from the movie. Two actors, Thomas Doherty (who plays Harry Hook, the son of Captain Hook) and Dylan Playfair (who plays Gil, the son of Gaston), shared an image on Instagram of a deleted scene from the film where their characters kiss. Fans were left upset that the scene, which appears in the book version, was cut from the film's final version.

'Borderlands'

Borderlands wasn't exactly a successful or beloved movie. Still, it may have been better received if it had included a filmed scene of characters Sir Alistair Hammerlock (Charles Babalola) and Wainwright Jakobs (Cheyenne Jackson) getting married. Director Eli Roth said that he shot an entire wedding scene (adapted from a DLC for the video game called Guns, Love and Tentacles: The Marriage of Wainwright & Hammerlock). Still, it ended up on the cutting room floor.

"It was one of those things that we all loved," Roth said to Entertainment Weekly. "We loved the actors. The scene itself turned out great, but in the overall mission of the film, it felt like a detour that stopped the mood and then went back."

'Gladiator II'

Denzel Washington was nominated for a Golden Globe and Critics' Choice award for his portrayal of Macrinus, a corrupt and ambitious former slave who trains gladiators. In the film, his character stated that he sometimes prefers men to women, but a scene further exploring this was apparently cut.

In an interview with Gayety, Washington said he had a same-sex kiss that was cut.

"I kissed the man in the film, but they took it out, they cut it, I think they got chicken," Washington revealed. "Yeah, I kissed the guy full on the lips, and I guess they weren't ready for that yet. I killed him about five minutes later. It's Gladiator. The Kiss of Death."

'A Quiet Place: Day One'

Fans and critics loved this 2024 horror prequel, but some were disappointed by the lack of depth in one character. In the movie, Joseph Quinn plays Eric, a new character who develops a friendship with the main character, Sam (Lupita Nyong'o).

In an interview, writer/director Michael Sarnoski revealed that Eric was gay, and some of his scenes explaining that were cut.

"It's not really addressed in the movie, but in some of the behind-the-scenes stuff, he was initially intended to be a gay man," he said. "And that was like, sort of a quiet aspect of his character that is sort of informing some of that. This is a platonic relationship between two people who find platonic love."

'Inside Out 2'

In 2024, it was reported that multiple sources inside Pixar said that Disney leadership put pressure on the filmmakers working on Inside Out 2 to make the main character Riley "come across as 'less gay.'"

They reportedly received "continuous notes" and were asked to put "special care" into "making the relationship between Riley and Val, a supporting character introduced in Inside Out 2, seem as platonic as possible."

Notes included edits to lighting and tone, and "just doing a lot of extra work to make sure that no one would potentially see them as not straight."

'Elio'

After Inside Out 2, Disney and Pixar faced more criticism when they cut a transgender storyline from the Disney+ series Win or Lose. Still, the company didn't learn its lesson. Reports now say that the original cut of 2025's Elio was much queerer was much queerer.

Elio was originally directed by out director, Adrian Molina, and his version of the film reportedly included scenes where Elio makes trash from the beach into a pink tank top, and a scene in his bedroom with pictures that suggested he had a male crush.

After he left the project, queer subtext was erased from the film, and Elio became "more masculine" per feedback from leadership.

"It was pretty clear through the production of the first version of the film that [studio leaders] were constantly sanding down these moments in the film that alluded to Elio’s sexuality of being queer," one anonymous Pixar artist said in the report. "A lot of people like to blame Disney, but the call is coming from inside the house. A lot of it is obeying-in-advance behavior, coming from the higher execs at Pixar."