Did you know animals can be gay too? From lion “bromances” to gay penguins and pansexual monkeys, “Queer Planet” showcases just how natural same-sex relationships are by examining relationships within the Animal Kingdom.
The show premiered on the streaming platform Peacock on June 6 and featured several cases of animals having non-heterosexual interactions. Over 1,500 species have been documented as having exhibited “queer behaviors,” according to the documentary.
One species featured in the documentary were lions, and specifically, how male lions will form close relationships with other males, which can include cuddling and “mounting” each other according to “Queer Planet.”
“Animals that have a lot of sex tend to have less war,” Bradley Trevor Greive says in the documentary. “I don’t know how that extrapolates to human society, but, to be honest, we should all probably get laid a little more than we do.”
This series comes a few months after scientists captured two male humpback whales having sex in what researchers said was the first instance of sexual activity documented for the species. Same-sex relationships have also been discovered by researchers in penguins, Amazon river dolphins, walruses and gray seals.
Most conservatives came out against the documentary, even conservative commentator Tomi Lahren went to X to share her thoughts: “If animals were indeed gay, there would be no more animals. Just basic science there.”
Those who share Lahren’s views believe the documentary is trying too hard to push a “satanic gay agenda,” as one X user posted. Conservative sports website OutKick posted a May story claiming NBC “the odds-on favorite to take home the ‘trying too hard to prove they support the LGBTQ community’ crown next month.”
However, “Queer Planet” isn’t about trying to push an agenda. Christine Wilkinson, a wildlife ecologist featured in the documentary, said throughout human history, queer and transgender people have been treated as “unnatural.” However, “Queer Planet” shows just the opposite, allowing viewers to see how queerness exists across different species.
“Everything you were taught as a kid is wrong,” Greive says in the “Queer Planet” trailer. “This is a queer planet.”