The 50 Most Horny Movies Ever Made
The people in them may be beautiful, sure, but modern cinematic sex scenes are often completely sterile. Even in the conservative 1980s, mainstream films happily explored adult sexuality, while today’s four-sector world of blockbusters leaves us dry (so to speak) for fear of excluding any teenager who might be in the audience.
Even the superhero movie pairings of yesteryear—Superman (Christopher Reeve) and Lois (Margot Kidder) or Batman (Michael Keaton) and Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer)—caused real heat compared to our modern, Disney-esque take on cinematic romance. While there have been some promising developments on this front over the past year ( Challengers, Baby ), overall the films don’t feel as exciting as they once did.
So let’s celebrate all the movies that are just yearning for it. Movies where every scene seems filled with pent-up desire, seething need and drenched in outright arousal. Echoing real life, these movies are downright lousy with people who are desperate to get laid. None of the most horny films qualify as porn—some don’t even have traditional sex scenes—but each one is DTF from the first frame to the end credits.
Poor things (2023)
What if Frankenstein , but sexy? Yorgos Lanthimos adapts Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel starring Emma Stone as a reanimated corpse with the mind of a child who gradually discovers the Victorian world around him. She is simple-minded at first, but then appears monstrous before discovering something like free will, which perhaps inevitably leads to the joy of masturbation. She becomes hungry—even thirsty—to experience the world, and lacks the inhibitions imposed on other women of her era. And honestly: get it. You can stream Bad Things on Hulu or rent it from Prime Video .
Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)
Although this element is largely absent from the source material, the reigning prince of darkness has been portrayed in cinema as a lusty bastard since at least 1931, when Bela Lugosi brought Eastern European royalty and seductiveness to the role. Updates to Hammer Horror in the 1960s introduced an even more overtly charming Dracula, and since then the “vampires are equally sexy” ethos has spread throughout the vampire genre, from Interview with the Vampire to Twilight (two exceptionally horny films we Let’s discuss). Later). Francis Ford Coppola’s sinister vision, however, is something entirely different, especially in the first half of the film: Dracula’s opulent (if rotting) castle is dressed for Roman-style orgies, full of bare-breasted brides hungry for men; Keanu Reeves wanders the halls in a psychedelic haze and with an obvious, almost visible, movie-length boner. Things don’t let up as the action moves to London and a now more human-looking Gary Oldman begins pursuing Winona Ryder’s much younger Mina. Every frame turns red with desire. You can rent Bram Stoker’s Dracula on Prime Video .
The Favorite (2018)
Sex, power and insecurity intertwine in this Oscar-winning dark comedy, which chronicles the love triangle between the mercurial Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) and two women (Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz) who are perfectly happy to exploit the Queen’s need for emotional and sexual validation as the ladder by which they move up the court of the British monarchy. You can rent The Favorite from Prime Video .
Love and Basketball (2000)
Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps play next-door neighbors who battle their growing attraction to each other over the course of several years, even as their career goals (each aspiring to play professional basketball) keep them apart. Although the film wasn’t a big success when it was first released, it has become a cult classic, and a lot of that has to do with the chemistry between the two. You can rent Love & Basketball from Prime Video .
Rear Window (1954)
All Hitchcock films are exciting, it’s just a matter of degree. What sets Rear Window apart is the particularly glamorous Grace Kelly as Lisa Fremont, who commands every scene she’s in while exuding a sexuality that her dim-witted boyfriend (James Stewart) has no idea about. what to do. You can stream Rear Window on The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video .
The Idea of You (2024)
After Prime adapted the best-selling gay novel Red, White and the Royal Blue (which we’ll get to later), the streamer called up one of the film’s stars, Nicholas Galitzine, to talk about Robin Lee’s best-selling book about a divorced art gallery owner (in played by Anne Hathaway), who turns 40 and starts an affair with a boy band member (he’s in his mid-twenties, so it’s not too bad). It’s essentially a rom-com, but the leads provide real horny tension, and the age difference adds enough scandal to make the whole thing feel a little unruly. You can stream The Idea of You on Prime Video .
Disobedience (2017)
Given the title and the theme at hand, you might think this is a BDSM drama, but instead it’s an edgy (but still hot) romantic drama about Ronit, a woman (Rachel Weisz) who returns to the heart of her Orthodox Jewish community. in North London for his father’s funeral. She was previously ostracized in part because of her romantic relationship with Esty (Rachel McAdams) when she was younger. Esty is still here, and the old passion between them quickly flares up again, even despite much disapproval. You can stream Disobedience on Max or rent it on Prime Video .
Mulholland Drive (2001)
Ostensibly the story of an aspiring actress (Naomi Watts) new to Los Angeles who discovers that her life is intertwined with that of an amnesiac woman (Laura Harring) recovering from a car accident. Although things eventually take a dark and surreal turn (we are starring in a David Lynch film, after all), the sexual and romantic chemistry between them is searing and even more impressive given the minimal mainstream representation of homosexuality circa 2001. You can stream Mulholland Drive on The Criterion Channel or rent it on Prime Video .
Saltburn (2023)
Barry Keoghan plays Oliver Quick, an Oxford scholarship student who immediately sets out to ingratiate himself with rich golden boy Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi). In reality, smart Oliver will do whatever it takes to achieve his goals, but with shades of Tom Ripley, he wants to be inside Felix almost as much as he wants to be in his world. However, Oliver goes a little further than Ripley, including getting up close and personal with the remains of Felix’s bath water. You can stream Saltburn on Prime Video .
Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Brad and Janet are a kick-ass couple until they end up at the home of Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry), a lovable drag queen who is building his perfect man out of spare parts in the basement. The two are horrified at first, but gradually begin to explore their own repressed sexual needs with a little help from the very willing creatures of the night. First Janet, then Brad decide they want nothing more than to be dirty. Join them, won’t you? You can rent The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Prime Video .
Paris 05:59: Theo and Hugo (2016)
Theo and Hugo begins, as most films do, with a 20-minute (impressively explicit) orgy at a gay sex club. The two main characters (Geoffroy Couet and François Nambeau) circle each other for a while before their mutual attraction breaks through the tangle of sweaty bodies and they connect not only for the sake of fucking (but also fucking). The film follows them for the next hour or so, exploring how much and how little two men can communicate over the course of a couple of hours. You can stream Paris 05:59 on Tubi .
Defense from Temptation (1990)
It’s bad news when K (Kadeem Hardison) meets a seductive woman (Cynthia Bond) at a bar because she is a literal succubus, luring men who don’t respect women and killing them, or at least causing them to be killed . K leaves but is visited by his friend Joel (the film’s writer and director, James Bond III, no relation), a minister who has become increasingly disillusioned with his faith and is very open to the idea of spending time with the Temptress. You can stream Def by Temptation on Prime Video , Tubi, Shudder, AMC+, Freevee and Peacock .
Generation Doom (1995)
New Queer Cinema auteur Gregg Araki has called this his “straight” film, but that only works in the sense that it puts a cis man-woman (James Duvall and Rose McGowan) at the center early on. Their dynamic quickly changes with the arrival of a drifter named X (Jonathon Sheck). Although jealousy and personality clashes complicate matters, the three engage in sex in a variety of forms as they travel around cursed Los Angeles, getting involved in increasingly (and intentionally) absurdly violent incidents. You can stream The Doom Generation on The Criterion Channel or rent it on Prime Video .
In the kingdom of feelings (1976)
Stunningly sensitive and deeply moving, the film tells a fictionalized version of the story of Sada Abe, who murdered her lover in a scandalous case in the 1930s. Reports portray her as either a monster or a proto-feminist heroine (of sorts), depending on who’s telling the story. Here she is played by Eiko Matsuda, a former sex worker who now makes her living as a maid in a hotel, where she begins a whirlwind romance with the married owner Kizo Ishida (Tatsuya Fuji). The passion between them grows until it becomes mutual obsession, and the sexually explicit film draws us into their doomed romance. You can stream In the Realm of the Senses on The Criterion Channel .
Body Warmth (1980)
Taking cues from Double Indemnity , Kathleen Turner makes her mark as a 1980s femme fatale in this neo-noir. William Hurt plays the lawyer who is ultimately willing to give it all up for her, and you can’t entirely blame him. You can rent Body Heat from Prime Video .
Atonement (2007)
A World War II love story gone horribly wrong. The film’s central relationship (between Keira Knightley and James McAvoy) becomes wildly passionate for a while, but then develops into the angst of a lifetime. At the very least, it’s a mega-hot library experience during which, hopefully, no books were harmed. You can rent Atonement from Prime Video .
Secretary (2002)
A much more effective introduction to light BDSM than the Fifty Shades films. There’s real heat between Maggie Gyllenhaal and James Spader, but there’s also a sense of humor that makes the passionate intensity of their relationship even more exciting. You can stream “Secretary” on Tubi and Freevee .
Phantom Thread (2017)
These two never lie in bed together, but the slow burn between Daniel Day-Lewis’ fashion designer Reynolds Woodcock (cough) and Vicky Krieps as his muse makes this Paul Thomas Anderson’s sexiest film, even sexier than his porn epic Boogie Nights ” . Woodcock’s meticulous and obsessive attention to detail in his interactions with Capes’ Alma creates an atmosphere of pent-up lust that only intensifies as the film progresses. You can stream Phantom Thread onNetflix or rent it from Prime Video .
And Your Mom Too (2001)
There’s real sex in Alfonso Cuaron’s coming-of-age masterpiece, but it’s really a film about youthful aspiration: between two teenage boys, and between them and the slightly older (and married) woman with whom they go on an impromptu road trip. . Their more typical teenage excitement (and repressed aspiration) is complicated by a more mature sexuality and a health condition that could mean this could be her last romance. You can stream Y tu mamá también onNetflix and Hulu .
How Stella got her groove back (1998)
The always great Angela Bassett sets out to break up her middle-aged routine with a trip to Jamaica, where she meets the much younger (newcomer at the time) Taye Diggs. Their (very hot) relationship cools down significantly when she returns to her life, at least until she decides she can bring some of this new passion into her daily life. You can rent How Stella Got Her Groove Back on Prime Video .
Brown Sugar (2002)
Catching up with Taye Diggs just a few years after Stella and Sana Lathan after Love and Basketball , Brown Sugar sees the two as personal and professional friends and sometimes music industry rivals who slowly begin to realize their mutual attraction. It’s all slowly building up to the point where friends become lovers. You can rent “Brown Sugar” from Prime Video .
The Last Picture Show (1971)
Roger Ebert insightfully described The Last Picture Show as “…a town that has no reason to exist, and people who have no reason to live there.” Apart from the billiard room and the titular movie theater, there is nothing to do there other than sex (which also happens in the pool room and movie theater). The teenagers are naturally horny, but so are the adults, especially Cloris Leachman’s bored and neglected housewife Ruth Popper, who begins a romance with high school student Sonny Crawford (Timothy Bottoms) that’s part torrid, part rote. You can rent The Last Picture Show from Prime Video .
Purple Noon (1960)
The first of many cinematic adaptations of Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley novels, and one of the best. Alain Delon brings Ripley to life in all his sociopathic glory. Although the love triangle between the three main characters is not as overt as in later adaptations, the film is about a mutual obsession with the glittering Mediterranean. You can stream Purple Noon on The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video .
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Incidentally, the adaptation of Highsmith’s 1999 novel of the same name comes a little closer than Purple Noon to conveying Tom Ripley’s innocent amorality (to be fair, he’s more fun in the books than in any of the films), but goes much further in exploring the subtext of Tom Dickey’s Obsession Greenleaf comes to the surface, reflecting the extreme and conflicting feelings of wanting to sleep with someone and wanting to be them at the same time. You can stream The Talented Mr. Ripley on Paramount+ or rent it on Prime Video .
Crimson Peak (2015)
In Guillermo del Toro’s stylized, underrated gothic romance, Mia Wasikowska plays a young woman in a very ill-conceived marriage to Tom Hiddleston who is drawn to Charlie Hunnam (of course), although Hiddleston’s character seemed too distracted by his sister (Jessica Chastain) to notice. The upper-class Edwardian costumes and sets create an atmosphere of subdued melancholy. Plus there is incest. You can rent Crimson Peak from Prime Video .
Orlando (1992)
Tilda Swinton fucks for the ages in this gorgeous, thrilling adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s novel, so horny that she even switches genders halfway through the film so she can fuck like the opposite sex. You can rent Orlando from Prime Video .
The Shape of Water (2017)
Guillermo del Toro’s film was only the second fantasy to take home the top Oscar prize, but it was definitely the first (so far!) to feature a surprisingly hot and impressively romantic interspecies romance.
Okay, technically The Return of the King also had an interspecies romance, but it was significantly less horny, the elves and humans had the same basic parts, and it didn’t require the visual depiction of a fishman’s cloaca. You can rent The Shape of Water from Prime Video .
Lighthouse (2019)
In this nightmarish throwback to silent-era filmmaking, Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe display unnerving sexual chemistry, but frankly, they’re cold and very lonely. This only becomes a problem when a hot mermaid swims by. You can stream The Lighthouse on Max or rent it from Prime Video .
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)
In wealthy 18th-century France, Marianne is commissioned to paint a portrait of the aristocratic Héloïse. The resulting image will be used to advertise Eloise to a potential suitor in faraway Milan. The forbidden (for several reasons) romance that develops between them is as stormy as it is inevitably short-lived. You can watch Portrait of a Lady on Fire on Hulu .
Moonstruck (1987)
It’s about as unlikely as cinematic chemistry gets (I would never have accepted the casting of Nicolas Cage and Cher as romantic leads), but what we have here is very real: Loretta Castorini is a middle-aged widow who has given up on passion. while Ronnie Cammareri is a sweaty, manic baker who reminds her that she’s not quite ready to give up good sex. You can stream Moonstruck on Tubi or rent it on Prime Video .
Call of Prey (1997)
In a more-than-decent sex farce and buddy comedy, Booty Challenge finds Jamie Foxx and Tommy Davidson on a particularly promising double date with Vivica A. Fox and Tamala Jones… only to discover that they can’t find condoms anywhere. . The two men go on a quest to find the essentials before their dates get boring and they give up. You can stream Booty Call on Tubi or rent it on Prime Video .
Bo Labor (1999)
Claire Denis’ intense account of the French Foreign Legion in Djibouti, La Belle Labour, is full of sumptuous imagery and cinematography. On the one hand, it is a deconstruction of cinematic masculinity; on the other hand, it is a story of hidden sexual obsession. You can stream Beau Travail on Max and The Criterion Channel or rent it on Prime Video .
L’Atalante (1934)
Jealousy and passion permeate the story of the newlyweds on Jean Vigo’s boat. Jean’s husband quickly becomes jealous of his new wife, Juliet, who understandably has interests beyond her regular time on the canal barge. Everything she does makes him jealous, pushes her away, until he becomes so desperate that, most memorably, he dives into a canal, hoping to even catch a glimpse of her face. You can stream L’Atalante on The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video .
The Addams Family (1991)
If there’s a hotter, healthier take on married adult sexuality in film, I haven’t seen it yet. Even with two children and a house full of relatives, Gomez (Raul Julia) and Morticia (Anjelica Huston) remain unreasonably hot for each other. You can stream The Addams Family on Paramount+ or rent it on Prime Video .
Batman Returns (1992)
The chemistry between Michael Keaton and Michelle Pfeiffer is intense here (especially in the ballroom scene), and even more so because it’s the last gasp of sexuality in superhero movies (good luck finding anything even remotely titillating in the MCU). But Pfeiffer’s Catwoman does a lot of the heavy lifting here, so much so that the character represents sexual awakening for straight kids and queer ’90s kids alike. You can rent Batman Returns from Prime Video .
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985)
The only film in the series with a male lead, the Nightmare sequel unfolds as Jesse Walsh’s (Mark Patton) seduction by Freddy, while Jesse shuns his girlfriend in favor of his best friend Ron. It’s a teen slasher movie, so of course everyone is horny, but most films in the genre don’t make many pit stops at leather bars and wet gyms. You can rent Freddy’s Revenge on Prime Video .
Student life (2012)
JJ (Tia Miller), a butch lesbian, and her twink best friend Seb (Kyle Treslove) are both looking for sex and romance, but their comfort with each other has become a crutch. Each of them enters into a passionate relationship that forces them to choose between friendship and love. You can stream Stud Life on Fandor .
Twilight franchise (2008–2012)
It’s essentially four-movie weird, moralistic teen foreplay that raises big questions like: Should we be more horny for werewolves? Or vampires? You can stream Twilight movies on Hulu and Tubi, or rent them on Prime Video .
Ghost (1990)
“Ghost” may not be particularly exciting for most of its runtime, but it earns extra points for a love scene involving a potter’s wheel that makes the hearts of many a Middle American flutter. It’s more evocatively constructed and exciting than the vast majority of real-life sex scenes in movies, and gets to the heart of the relationship in a way that makes the whole movie work. You can stream Ghost on Paramount+ or rent it from Prime Video .
Song of Love (1950)
The two men at the heart of Jean Genet’s Love Song , long banned for its homosexual content, never share a room except for a brief, chaste fantasy sequence. Two prisoners in adjacent cells share a palpable passion for each other, but are cruelly discouraged by a guard. A key moment in the short film involves expelling cigarette smoke through a straw, one of the most amazing erotic scenes in cinema. You can stream Un Chant D’Amour (aka Song of Love ) on Kanopy .
Before Sunset (2004)
For Jesse and Celine (Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy), it’s been the slowest of slow burns, but here the tension runs high: They haven’t seen each other in years and didn’t expect their violent attraction to rekindle so strongly. fast. He’s married and she’s in a relationship, but in the end, none of that matters. You can rent Before Sunset from Prime Video .
Interview with the Vampire (1994)
The new TV series adaptation turns what would have been subtext into text in 1994, but viewers didn’t have to look too far to see the mutual attraction between Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise in sweltering New Orleans. You can rent Interview with the Vampire from Prime Video .
Mississippi Masala (1991)
Denzel Washington has played surprisingly few romantic leading roles in his long career, but brings some spice to this charming and sultry tale of the romance between his character and the child of Ugandan Indian immigrants (Sarita Chowdhury) in the American Deep South. The film explores the relationship issues between each of their communities, but what stands out is the almost forbidden passion between the main characters. You can stream Mississippi Masala on Max and The Criterion Channel or rent it from Prime Video .
Call Me by Your Name (2017)
The coming-of-age story starring a young, energetic Elio (Timothée Chalamet) and an older Oliver (Armie Hammer) in Call Me by Your Name takes place largely over the course of one sweaty, hot summer in northern Italy. For Elio, this is a time of growing sexual frustration – to the point where he sneaks off to sniff Oliver’s clothes. Sex with childhood friend Marcia doesn’t quite scratch the itch, and soon Elio and Oliver are engaged in a secret affair and eating local foods. You can stream Call Me by Your Name on Max or rent it on Prime Video .
Cruel Intentions (1999)
It was a journey film for an entire generation of young people with more than one sexual orientation. Re-setting the 18th-century novel Dangerous Liaisons for a 1990s prep school, the film is about sex, desirability and power, and serves as a reminder that the idle rich can never be trusted. Everyone here is looking for sex, and almost everyone uses their sexuality as a means to an end. In one of the key and one of the best scenes of the film, Katherine (Sarah Michelle Gellar) teaches Cecile (Selma Blair) how to French kiss. You can rent Cruel Intentions from Prime Video .
Red, White and Royal Blue (2023)
In Casey McQuiston’s best-selling book Red, White and the Royal Blue, the spare heir (or spare heir?) to the British throne has fallen out with the son of the President of the United States – a minor diplomatic problem that the two work out. It is highly recommended to fix it. Of course, by pretending they don’t hate each other, they actually stop hating each other. So much so that they sneak away whenever possible. The plot is a rom-com, but the leads (Taylor Zakhar Perez, Nicholas Galitzine) provide a real spark. You can stream Red, White and Royal Blue on Prime Video .
God’s Country (2017)
Josh O’Connor ( Crown Prince Charles) and Alec Secareanu play Yorkshire farmer Johnny and Romanian migrant worker Gheorghe. Johnny is mostly content to fuck any man who will give him the time of day in the remote village, at least until Gheorghe joins him. Their initially very stormy relationship develops into something much more romantic, not without several literal somersaults in the hay. You can rent God’s Own Country from Prime Video .
Stranger by the Lake (2013)
A thoroughly sexually explicit as well as an incredibly effective thriller (it made the top ten of its year), writer-director Alain Guiraudie’s drama is set in a gay cruise area on a nudist beach and nearby forest. Frank (Pierre Deladonchamps) falls in love with lust and perhaps love for Michel (Christophe Pauw), whom he later watches drown another man in a lake. Frank isn’t sure he’s willing to let that stop him from getting something clearly superior, if dangerous, D. You can rent Stranger by the Lake on Prime Video .
Monster’s Ball (2001)
Halle Berry won an Oscar for her role as Leticia Musgrove, the wife of a convicted murderer whose death was overseen by Hank Grotowski (Billy Bob Thornton), the prison’s deputy warden. They are both deeply damaged and broken people who lash out at everyone around them, often abusively. They also develop an intense and passionate connection that can’t fix either of them, but can break through all the people and things telling them to stay apart. You can rent Monster’s Ball from Prime Video .
She’s Gotta Have It (1986)
Spike Lee’s first feature film follows the iconic Nola Darling (Tracy Camilla Jones) as she juggles three very different men and discovers that only together they have all the qualities she’s looking for. The film’s legacy is complicated by a rape scene that’s portrayed rather brutally ( Spike Lee agrees ), but the film nonetheless takes seriously the idea that (*sigh*) a woman can have sexual needs and desires that deserve to be taken seriously. You can watch She’s Gotta Have It onNetflix .