LGBTQ+ representation in animation has been on the rise for the past few years, but it’s not nearly as accepted as we hope it would be, at least where certain major studios are concerned. Indeed, television movies, independent animators, and Japanese movies based on Mangas, for instance, have mostly been the ones allowing space for queer voices to be heard and stories to be told.

Update July 8, 2023: In honor of the release of Nimota, this article has been updated with even more great LGBTQ+ animated films.

That said, in recent years, Disney and Pixar have been taking a step forward by including more queer characters and allowing them to show intimacy in the same way straight characters do. Even still, when compiling this list, there wasn’t that much to choose from, but let's take a look at 25 LGBTQ+ animated movies that you should check out next.

25 Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs (2008)

Turanga Leela (Katey Sagal) in Futurama The Beast with a Billion Backs (2008)
20th Century Home Entertainment

The second of four straight-to-video Futurama films, Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs continues immediately after the events of Bender's Big Score. After time travel shenanigans leaves a nasty gash in the universe, the tear draws the attention of a planet-sized creature called "Yivo." After Fry finds himself literally and figuratively attached to Yivo via a purple tentacle, the fate of the planet lies in the artificial hands of Bender and the rest of Earth's robots once Yivo crosses over through the hole in the universe.

While The Beast With a Million Backs is definitely one of the weaker films in the direct-to-video tetralogy, it's notable for featuring two unique LGBTQ+ characters: Colleen, a new love interest for Fry who enters a polyamorous relationship, and Yivo, a character whose non-binary orientation is surprisingly progressive for the late 2000s.

24 Adolescence of Utena (1999)

Tomoko Kawakami in Adolescence of Utena (1999)
Toei Company

A follow-up film to Revolutionary Girl Utena, Adolescence of Utena, tells the story of Utena Tenjou, a high school student who inadvertently finds herself caught up in a series of intense fencing duels at Ohtori Academy. When it's revealed that the duels will determine who wins favor with the "Rose Bride," Anthy Himemiya, a series of revelations will see the two immersed in a world of magic, metaphor, and more in an anime film for the ages.

Related: Best Movies from LGBTQ+ Women Filmmakers, Ranked

Noted for placing an even bigger emphasis on the relationship between Utena and Anthy compared to the anime series, Adolescence of Utena is often cited as one of the more popular examples of LGBT-friendly anime along with Yuri on Ice and Princess Jellyfish. It also happens to be incredibly surreal, dividing critical opinions with its bizarre sequences and abstract symbolism.

23 Queer Duck: The Movie (2006)

queer-duck-the-movie
Paramount Pictures

Based on the web series Queer Duck, Queer Duck: The Movie was the first film to air on the gay-themed channel Logo. The adult animated film is set in the 1960s, back when queerness was still a crime. It focuses on the titular Queer Duck, who wakes up one day realizing that being gay is not worth it when everyone is so against it. He falls in love with a Broadway actress, but, during his journey, he meets different characters who are part of the gay rights movement: drag queen Rex, his lover Openly Gator, a homophobic bigoted priest, Conan O'Brien, Bi-Polar Bear. In the end, Queer Duck realizes he's gay to stay.

22 Harmony (2015)

Harmony-2015 (1)
Studio 4°C

Directed by Michael Arias and Takashi Nakamura for Studio 4°C, Harmony is a Japanese animated science fiction film. Set in a futuristic world where, after many civil wars, peace has finally been established, there is no personal autonomy as society is severely controlled. Three young women fight against this idea by deciding to commit suicide together. Two of them survive, and when they meet after many years, they start learning the truth about this so-called "perfect world." The mild lesbian sensuality makes Harmony all that more tragic.

21 Out (2020)

Out Pixar movie
Walt Disney Studios
Pixar

As both Disney and Pixar's first short to feature a gay main character, Out is a nine-minute-long short. It follows a man who has not yet come out to his parents. However, once he accidentally swaps mind with a dog, things get a little bit easier for him. It was shortlisted for the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film at the 93rd Academy Awards.

20 Storks (2016)

Storks-2016
Warner Bros.

Storks is a 3D-computer-animated adventure comedy focusing on a former stork company who were in charge of delivering babies to families. The company now acts as a package delivery business instead, but that soon changes when they accidentally create a baby and are forced to bring it home. Although a "blink-and-you'll-miss-it" moment, the movie includes both a lesbian and a gay couple in the ending sequence. This was a big step in the right direction as it shows queer people as parents, which used to be frowned down upon in animation.

19 Strange World (2022)

Strange-World-2022 (1)
Disney

As the years pass, we can see more vivid queer representations in animation. In that sense, Strange World introduces Walt Disney Animation Studios' first openly LGBTQ+ lead character, Ethan Clade. As Disney's seventh sci-fi movie, the film follows three generations of a family who have to overcome their differences in order to save a miracle planet. Strange World offers a multicultural embrace in an exotic environment.

18 Lightyear (2022)

Lightyear-2022 (1)
Disney / Pixar

Instead of taking place in Toy Story's fictional universe, Lightyear is rather introduced as a movie that the Toy Story characters themselves have seen. It follows Buzz Lightyear as a human as he tries finding his way back home from an abandoned planet alongside his crew. The character of Alisha Hawthorne, Buzz's friend, shares a kiss with her female partner at the end of the movie, which caused the movie to be banned in many countries. What an uproar a simple kiss can cause...

17 South Park: The Movie (1999)

South-Park-The-Movie-1999 (1)
Comedy Central Films

Based on the animated sitcom South Park, the plot of South Park: The Movie follows four friends who sneak into the cinema to watch an R-rated Canadian movie, after which they start swearing profusely. It causes an uproar and moral panic against Canada's influence. The movie satirizes themes of censorship and scapegoating, as well as the Disney Renaissance. South Park was already known for normalizing the gay community, but with this movie, they've put a funny twist on it by coupling Satan and Saddam Hussein.

16 Wendell & Wild (2022)

Wendell-&-Wild-2022
Netflix

Directed by Henry Selick, from a screenplay from both Selick and Jordan Peele, Wendell & Wild is a stop-motion horror comedy. It tells the story of two devious demon brothers who have to fight their arch-enemy. When a girl named Kat accidentally summons the brothers, chaos ensues. Kat's best friend is the first ever trans character in a stop-motion: Raúl, an artistic Latino trans boy.

15 Sausage Party (2016)

Sausage Party Main Characters
Columbia Pictures

An adult computer-animated black comedy about a supermarket's food items, who realize they eventually become a meal? Sign us up. Sausage Party sees these characters trying to come up with a plan to escape their dreadful fate. The film has a lesbian character, Teresa Taco, who openly shows her affection for Brenda Bunson. It also explores bisexuality realistically as Brenda slowly explores her sexuality.

14 Daria: Is It Fall Yet? (2000)

Daria-Is-It-Fall-Yet-2000 (1)
Netflix

As the first of two film-length installments for MTV's animated series, Daria, Is It Fall Yet? chronicles the summer break of two main characters: Daria and Jane. The movie explores heteronormativity and the idea of being scared to step out of that box. Once Jane does that, she's met with disappointment when the character who went after her ends up with someone else.

13 Project A-Ko (1986)

Miki Ito (Stacey Gregg) and Emi Shinohara (Denica Fairman) in Project A-Ko (1986)
Shochiku

Along with Bubblegum Crisis and Akira, Project A-Ko is arguably responsible for the popularity of anime in the West starting in the 1990s. Featuring a deliberately simple story gone awry, we follow a bubbly heroine in the form of A-ko Magami, along with her best friend C-ko Kotobuki. However, when B-ko Fuji finds herself attracted to C-ko, her attempts to woo the girl of her dreams gradually devolve into action-packed brawls, alien invasions, and nonstop explosions.

While later films in the Project A-Ko series would, unfortunately, ditch the LGBTQ+ elements established in the first, they are still brilliant pieces of animation that equally pay tribute to what came before while forging their own identity. Just bear this in mind: if you're expecting a serious relationship drama, you may want to turn your attention elsewhere.

12 Promare (2019)

Promare (2019) cast
Toho Animation

The first feature-length film from Studio Trigger (Kill la Kill, Little Witch Academia), Promare is one of the most visually stunning projects the animation studio has put out to date. Perfecting the "Trigger formula," Promare follows a heroic firefighter named Galo as he leads the Burning Rescue Fire Department. However, when a group of mutants referred to as "BURNISH" are capable of wielding fire itself as a weapon, the two groups will clash in a heated battle for Earth.

Related: 11 Black LGBTQ+ Filmmakers You Should Know About

While LGBTQ+ representation in Promare isn't necessarily front and center throughout, meaning that it's subject to deniability, the relationship between our protagonist Galo and antagonist, Lio has some notable subtext that can't be ignored. Promare was also well received for its brilliant action scenes, colorful art style, and overall sense of fun strewn throughout its brief runtime.

11 ParaNorman (2012)

ParaNorman-2012 (1)
Laika

As the first stop-motion film to use a 3D color printer to create character faces, ParaNorman centers around Norman Babcock, who has the ability to talk to ghosts and is given the task of saving his town with his crew from a curse. It comes as a surprise when the jock character, Mitch, openly admits that he has a boyfriend, making him the first openly gay character in an animated film.

10 Ninja Scroll (1993)

Ninja-Scroll-1993 (1)
JVC

Regarded by many as one of the most influential anime films ever made, Ninja Scroll follows a mercenary swordsman who battles a team of ninjas called the Eight Devils of Kimon. The film depicts both strong women characters and a monogamous gay relationship, which is different from the common practice of feudal lords having sexual affairs with their male retainers.

9 In a Heartbeat (2017)

In-A-Heartbeat-2017
Ringling College of Art and Design

In a Heartbeat took the internet by storm when it was released on YouTube back in 2017. The computer-animated short film, produced by Ringling College of Art and Design, follows a closeted boy Sherwin who has a crush on his male classmate. His heart actively desires to be with him.

8 My Dog Tulip (2009)

My-Dog-Tulip-2009 (1)
New Yorker Films

Based on the 1956 memoir of the same name, My Dog Tulip is an independent-animated feature film. It tells the story of Ackerley's 15-year relationship with his Alsatian dog Queenie. The memoir was written by an openly gay writer, who imagined the dog as his best friend that was hard to find in the 1950s due to his sexuality.

7 Tokyo Godfathers (2003)

Tokyo-Godfathers-2003 (1)
Madhouse

Plot heavily grounded in realism, Tokyo Godfathers is a tragicomedy that follows three unhoused people: a middle-aged alcoholic, teenage runaway, and a former drag queen. These individuals accidentally find a baby in the trash, and decide to take care of it as a family.

6 Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling (2018)

Rocko's-Modern-Life-Static-Cling-2018
Nickelodeon

As a continuation of Joe Murray's Nickelodeon series Rocko's Modern Life, Static Cling is a television special about Rocko and his friends as they return to a 2010s O-Town with modern technologies. Rocko doesn't like the 21st Century vibe, so he embarks on a journey to bring his favorite old show back. The story features a prominent trans story arc, where one of the characters, Ralph, returns as Rachel in the special.