Few things have always seemed as impossible as a platonic friendship between gay and straight men.
That has a lot to do with societal homophobia that assumes two people of different sexualities cannot be friends without one person or another crossing the line.
Friendships can be quite fulfilling, and everyone deserves to experience this. The characters in this list have broken barriers simply by existing and showing that friendship can be as epic as romance
7. Lucas Lallement and Yann – Skam France
As teenagers grow older, life takes them on different journeys for various reasons, and what once looked like the most important thing can wither and die.
Being of different sexual orientations can be the death of friendships between boys, but Lucas (Axel Auriant) and Yann (Léo Daudin) proved that it doesn’t have to end that way.
What stands out in the French remake of the teen drama Skam is Lucas and Yann’s relationship, particularly Lucas’ coming-out scene.
After having watched a million and one coming out scenes, we expected it to take a common pattern where the straight guy decides to end the friendship, thinking they’ll be hit on now that they learned that their friend is gay.
And it does, but that’s not the whole story.
Yann is quite offended that Lucas kept it from him for so long, feeling like Lucas never considered their friendship strong.
It is a flip-the-script moment that’ll forever remain iconic because it showed the power of friendship and trust that comes with it.
6. Colin Hughes and Isaac McAdoo- Ted Lasso
Photo: Courtesy of Apple TV+Like Lucas and Yann, Colin (Billy Harris) and McAdoo (Kola Bokinni) suffered the same trust problem after Colin came out.
While their friendship was not the focus of Ted Lasso, it always played out in the background and was tested when Colin came out as gay.
McAdoo’s reaction spoke of the feelings of confusion he had experienced after learning that his friend had been keeping this huge secret.
The show did not dive into McAdoo’s feelings, but when they made up, it was one of the best scenes on Ted Lasso.
5. Charley and Wally – School Spirits
Rules of social hierarchy dictate that a straight football jock and the small gay kid cannot be friends.
But those rules don’t exist in death, especially in limbo.
School Spirits is about the emotional scars that death inflicts on the living, and potentially the dead.
With Charley (Nick Pugliese) and Wally (Milo Manheim), their history was complicated, as Wally initially contributed to the amplification of Charley’s trauma.
However, things take a turn when Wally offers a sincere apology, and their relationship is transformed.
They become genuine friends, and Wally turns out to be Charley’s biggest champion, constantly pushing him to take bigger risks in the afterlife.
Theirs becomes a kind of friendship that is honest and sincere.
4. Ian Gallagher and Lip Gallagher – Shameless
Ian (Cameron Monaghan) and Lip (Jeremy Allen White) are atypical in this list because they are not only friends but also brothers.
Many siblings just tolerate each other, and with two brothers of different sexualities in South Side Chicago, this is a recipe for killing a connection.
However, Lip and Ian are the biggest fans and champions of each other. Despite their very different personalities, they are curious about the other person’s life and make an effort to understand it.
Lip and Ian’s friendship does see its fair share of troubles, but they always find a way to resolve their issues.
They are a testament to the fact that friendships are about choosing each other despite external factors.
3. Charlie Spring and Tao Xu – Heartstopper
Heartstopper might be about romance, but friendship also forms a huge part of the show’s allure.
And there are no bigger friends than Charlie (Joe Locke) and Tao (Will Gao), who met while they were just little wee boys in primary school.
Despite being physically smaller and unpopular, they never try to trade each other for school clout.
Their deep loyalty makes their friendship exciting to watch. Tao would go to war if anyone messes with Charlie, and I support that.
After all these years, they still like and love each other. That is rare.
2. Eric Effiong and Otis Milburn- Sex Education
The British sex comedy series Sex Education is an ensemble affair, but it’s arguably about Eric (Ncuti Gatwa) and Otis (Asa Butterfield).
The show adopts a casual approach to the two high schoolers, who have been friends for a long time, and treats their relationship like any other friendship.
From their casual morning rides to school to their deep loyalty to each other, they anchor sex education despite being from very different backgrounds racially, religiously, and sexually.
1. Cameron Cope and Ray McAffey- Boots
Photo: Alfonso “Pompo” Bresciani/NetflixBeing gay in the 90s was not a walk in the park. One way someone could make it worse is by joining the Marines.
Cameron (Miles Heizer) does just that when he follows his best friend to the military and is subjected to untold suffering.
Boot camp is particularly challenging for Cameron, who is not only physically weaker but also emotionally vulnerable. The series takes place during the don’t ask, don’t tell era, where every gay service member lived with the fear of being discovered.
However, Cameron is out to Ray (Liam Oh) and they don’t keep secrets from each other. This makes boot camp less lonely and intimidating for both of them, as Ray also has his own issues.
Their deep loyalty to each other allows them to achieve their best, knowing that the other person is a stone’s throw away.
Like Eric and Otis, their friendship is the cornerstone of Boots, demonstrating how a strong friendship can help someone overcome even the most challenging situations in life.
We all could use a best friend, even if it’s a straight man. And these characters have proven that it happens, let alone being quite possible.