#queerbaiting

One day I will enter a new fandom and that fnadom will use the term queerbaiting correctly. Apparently that day is not right now but I remain hopeful.

My favourite thing about queerbaiting is that completely aside from being a skeevy marketing technique, it’s also just. Bad writing. Like, if you were trying to craft a relationship that people are supposed to interpret as “they’re just good friends” then you’ve done a terrible job at it.

You’re really telling on yourself if the options are either “I’m a manipulative piece of shit who is actively deceiving marginalized people because I don’t have enough confidence in my work to trust that they’ll enjoy its own merits” or “I’m such incompetent writer that people are interpreting my work completely the opposite of the way I intended, and I’m so insecure about that that I feel the need to blame my audience for it and mock them when they call me out.”

Ok I want to be super super clear on one point which is that people cannot queerbait. I am going to assume that you know this but for anyone else queerbaiting is a term for marketing a show or movie as queer while none of the characters are canonically queer. Individual people cannot do this . Also it’s so overused as a term I’m putting it up on a shelf along with the term parasocial.

I have not read or watched everything Hudson has ever done but idk man I feel like if you enthusiastically and respectfully and with talent play a gay character and talk knowledgeably and respectfully about the arc, then I just don’t call that performative. Literally what do people want from him (besides explicit confirmation of his sexuality which they are not entitled to).

For Harry, why do you think he’s doing this for attention versus genuinely feels drawn to more gender non conforming styles and is not interested in defining his sexuality for the public? Which again, he’s not required to do?

Also the stereotype that bi people are just doing it for attention is prevalent and harmful.

And now maybe Harry or Hudson aren’t queer or exploring their sexualities. Maybe they are both straight men but there are people who see this kind of discourse and think if they explore parts of themselves before they can prove their sexualities they will be seen as performative or sinister or doing it for attention they will shut down those parts of themselves. That to me is far more harmful that whatever harm you or others think Hudson and Harry are doing (which I just don’t see what that harm is)

If we want to decrease toxic masculinity and misogyny and homophobia we need far far less policing of sexuality and gender expression and yet we are now seeing more of it from all sides and that is absolutely nothing but harmful.

All day since talking with @stuckinthistaydream about the ridiculous queerbaiting allegations with both Hudson Williams and Harry Styles I’ve been thinking about my own experiences.

I am forever grateful for the queer friends at my small college for giving me a community when at 20 I was feeling increasingly alienated from my group of straight female friends, found myself drawn to attending performances of queer spoken word artists and taking sociology of sexuality classes while outwardly considering myself a straight ally.

I’m grateful for the friends who let me raid their closets for outfits to wear to gay bars with them and watching every shitty wlw movie in existence and only lightly teasing me first about being the most confusing straight girl they knew and later lightly teasing me when I started dating another queer person without labeling myself initially and then later identifying as bisexual and later queer and coming to my big gay wedding.

They didn’t demand a dissertation on my sexuality or make me prove I belonged or accuse me of queer baiting them or anyone else and I’m so thankful because it’s the first group of friends I ever felt fully accepted by and comfortable with

People seemed to pay a lot of attention to the clothes I was wearing and some people accused me of something called queerbaiting… but did it ever occur to you that MAYBE YOU DON’T KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT ME DAD?

Harry Styles pokes fun at queerbaiting allegations on SNL

Now THAT’S queerbaiting

Harry Styles kisses Ben Marshall during SNL monologue after poking fun at queerbaiting allegations

Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but with that monologue he may have ruined his chance of coming out for real one day and be celebrated by the community. Everyone found it irritating and even more of a confirmation he’s a queerbaiter. I read a comment that said “he thinks we’re still in 2019” and yes, pretty much that…

Hi, anons!

I shouldn’t comment on this since i haven’t watched it, but i’m letting you all vent 💜

Hi, anon!

Whatever Harry did or didn’t do in regards to adressing his sexuality and the queerbaiting, he’s not in a postition to represent the queer community right now, when he’s only publicly dated women (hundreds) and denied being bisexual. He needs to realise that, and act accordingly. Getting Harry to realise his own privilege is a battle i have given up on winning though. He’ll remain ignorant as long as he keeps the company he keeps. His actions is making him more enemies than friends. And in regards to his motivation for doing it, i wouldn’t be surprised if you are right.

I still don’t know what he said or did (i don’t want to know, so no need to tell me), but is a comedy show, where everything will be taken as a joke, the right place and time?

why the hell was maya allowed to say she pushed for ronance but noah wasn’t allowed to say he pushed for byler?

I am so funny 🥹

BTW please don’t ask to be friends/dm me on discord, thank you.

Okay these last few days I’ve been on and off with Tumblr so people might have already talked of this but

It was today I learned Stranger Things won the GLAAD drama series award (award show dedicated to queer representation)

The show that won queer representation queerbaited their audience, none of the queer ships were together in the end, used a gay man feeling to uplift the toxic straight couple, the butch/androgynous fashion style lesbian character ends in wearing fem clothing and frills (things shes stated to dislike!)

Peak Representation

But also Noah Schnapp speech was beautiful (at least to me) and Heated Rivarly for the win !!

THEY ARE HAUNTING ME

This is Bs… Tyler Posey shouldn’t be in cover of Nineteen92… He hasn’t been on any good roles…there’s literally famous ppl who on the shots because of block bluster movies and series: Heated Rivalry, Avatar Fire and Ash, I know what you did Last Summer 2025, 9-1-1… Like Where Tyler Posey been doing in between like… Posey always wanted to be the center of attention because he’s spotlight was faded and now he want to clout his way into asking his costar buddy Andrew Matarazzo

I don’t believe anything that big mouth ego being Queer/Pan/Bi

just because he only want is attention an nothing else… how you called yourself queer when you specifically said you only experimented but never like Men…

Using Onlyfans is a one way ticket to mediocre publicity and denying to media about being a Queerbaiting…when you said Thousands Times quoted “Im Very attractive to Women…Not attractive to guys”…

Tyler Posey is just a Joke Fake Person… Homophobic person as well

hello there,

i like to think about Dylan o’brien everytime and everyday

but also I dont like Tyler Posey… his ego and gay baiting is shitty stunt to pull i like to post stuff basically to expose that guy career… homophobic person not welcome to gay community

this is also Anti Tyler Posey Post any account that likes Posey for Nsfw or Sfw Male thirst Content will be blocked…

Feel Free too Look at top to bottom

Finding Other People comments believe that Tyler Posey is lamp Queerbaiter

Thread #1

At this point, I just have to roll my eyes when people start the queerbait accusations on a ship that is so clearly never going to happen!!

Hot take, but I think if more people watched films from the 50s, 60s, and 70s… queerbaiting wouldn’t be such an issue.

The fact that I have a pre-vol 1 tag called byler being soft launched shld tell you all you need to know about whether there was queerbaiting involved or not.