The onset of Over-the-Top platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney + Hotstar have created a boom in the variety of content that is available for streaming. The no bounds treatment of genres and cinematography has contributed in a visual experience like no other. It no longer stands in the mainstream with either romance or choppy thrillers available at best; you have with you a large spectrum that lies in the middle which allows you to explore darker motifs, desires and dread.
In discussion, we have today a similar shade that peaks at unfiltered and unabashed exploration of sexuality. So, whether you are a horny teen or an adult looking to spice up your sex life with some you know, inspiration from the media…we got you!
Today we bring to you another listicle that looks at the most steamy shows on Netflix that you can stream as and when you please.
Cast: Johnny Flynn, Antonia Thomas, Daniel Ings, Joshua McGuire, Hannah Britland.
Having four seasons and running for a total of four years, the show stands at the IMDb rating of 8/10. Its protagonist Dylan has had a long list of women that he, over the course of years, has been intimate with to find his dream love. And when his diagnosis for a sexually transmitted disease namely Chlamydia rules positive, he is on a quest to trace who he contracted it from.
Keeping the tone humours, the show is no way what you just put on for background noise. The show plunges into the sea of love and explores its depths, obstacles and talks about the influence every relationship leaves. And very well so, the audience is carried on the journey of Dylan through flashbacks and is truly given an opportunity to grow with the protagonist while simultaneously generating a laugh or two via the sexual encounters.
Much like the other shows that just stuff in sex scenes to make it steamy, Lovesick is pretty much a big score in achieving to do the contrary. It carries with it a perfect blend of romance and comedy, making it addictive as you start watching. The thrill of chasing somebody, the poignancy of skewed timelines with the one you love and finally, the discomforting realisation that the person you are supposed to be with is not the one who you find yourself attracted towards.
A quick fun fact, the show was originally called ‘Scrotal Recall’.
Cast: Logan Browning, Brandon P. Bell, DeRon Horton, Ashley Featherson, Antoinette Robertson.
Sitting at an IMDb of 6.4/10, the show is laced in drama. The show revolves around the protagonist Samantha White’s radio show Dear White People and her self-published book ‘Ebony and Ivy’, where she uses witty remarks and double entendres to criticise white people and the racist transgressions that the people of colour endure at the predominantly white university. The act of her defiance causes a major stir in the fictional Winchester University.
The cast is largely black and as you may have guessed, the show is an active commentary on the struggles that being Black is in a society that is largely white. The group of Winchester University students navigate their journey through cultural bias and social injustice prevalent in the “post-racial” landscape.
Overall, the series does a fairly decent job in balancing the humour with certain impactful moments that leave a mark on these people. In the similar stretch, it dives deep to explore how sex, as a medium, can complicate friendships, persuade power dynamic and lead to an attempt at self-discovery.
Not all jokes scripted for the show land and the representation of the supporting characters can come off as cartoonish. Yet the confidence of the show lies in its upright and consistent voice. Another point of significance in the show is the director having the actors stare directly into the camera which invades the safe space of the viewers, making them uncomfortable and almost demanding them to contemplate, to act.
Cast: Asa Butterfield, Emma Mackey, Ncuti Gatwa, Tanya Reynolds, Gillian Anderson.
The show was released on Netflix in 2019 and its final season came out just last year, with an IMBd of 8.3/10. I mean, it seems unfair to talk about steamy shows and not mention Sex Education. The show has almost achieved cult-like status!
When it comes to the plot, the show is pretty unique at least in my opinion. A sex therapist mother joins hands with her teenage son’s high school classmate to set up an underground sex therapy clinic at school. No wonder that this show is such a hit among the Indians, for somebody who didn’t even get sex ed in school, the idea of sex therapy clinic is bound to sell.
Sex Education is successful in diminishing taboo around sex specifically among the teens. Keeping the tone light with humour, the series delves into intimacy, sexual health, identity and agency. Further lauding is due to the show for making its casting inclusive of BIPOC, LGBTQ+ and people with disabilities. Not just that, the show truly has served as a path for real sex education for its viewers by incorporating storyline that concern issues of female desire, orgasm, performance anxiety, masturbation etc, making it incredibly sex-positive. The show stands in firm defiance of the defined boundaries of gender, sexual preferences and new identities.
Right on from the casting to the visuals of the show, everything screams aesthetic – the bold fashion choices, the Welsh countryside and the bright colours.
Cast: Omar Ayuso, Itzan Escamilla, Miguel Bernardeau, Aron Piper.
Remember that baby blue eyed boy with chiselled jawline by the name of Manu Rios that got really famous on Instagram a couple of years back? Yes, him! Well, he features on this show. Now, you have a reason to binge watch this show!
The show encapsulates the journey of three working-class teens in Spain who get enrolled in a private school. They find themselves in conflict with the wealthy student which in a drastic turn of events, leads to a murder.
Naturally, Elite becomes that ground that questions the socio-economic gap between the working class and the rich. (Sidenote: Note how the title is still ‘Elite’. Power dynamics much?) And this is what sets this show apart from most teen dramas. Despite being a teen drama, Elite explores the darker side of the societal norm and when done with fine writing, the show’s beauty is enhanced. Along with drugs, social climbing, betrayal, heartbreaks and sex (might I add, lots of it!). Though the show is full of drama, it does so with both style and a fresh perspective much like it’s murder mystery that needs to be solved. The audience is left in absolute flux as the murderer is nowhere near predictable.
Cast: Sarah Shahi, Mike Vogel, Adam Demos, Cloe Anthony.
The show was cancelled after the second season owing to some controversy with the lead of the show. However, in the two seasons that are out on Netflix, it showcases a woman with a rather vibrant sexual past who is now married with kids. She soon comes face to face with her bad-boy ex that she still can’t seem to stop fantasising about.
As she is a housewife living an idyllic lifestyle, the storyline is somewhat that you may have guessed already. She engages in affairs and it is not long before her once fiery sexual encounter re enters her life. And somewhere in that ups and downs, the show puts forward important questions regarding parenthood and marriage as well as the identity that has been gained and lost along the process.
Subverting the norm, the show does find itself boasting of the female gaze rather than that of the traditional maze gaze. In this way, the series extends to the aesthetics of a male which is evident in its casting of males that could easily pass for your Ralph Lauren models. However, the downside of it can be read in the absurd body image expectations that it is putting forth.
6) Sexify
Cast: Aleksandra Skraba, Maria Sobocińska, Sandra Drzymalska, Malgorzata Foremniak.
We know guys, these names are a bit much but damn.
The release of the third season of this Polish show is still a talk in progress but the rating of the two seasons looks decent at 6.5/10.
The university hosts the competition for the best start-up and in the hope of winning it, the main character Natalia with the help of her friends, decides to create an app called Sexify. The aim of the app is to guide people’s way to the world of sexuality and female orgasm.
Given its plotline and its guiding nature that follows through the show, Sexify has often found itself being compared to Sex Education. Like its comparison, Sexify has a cheerful tone, holistic characters and storyline that is relatable. The show mostly looks at the topic of intimacy, sex and relationships from an educational standpoint yet is immersed in plenty of steamy scenes that have the ability to leave the viewers hot and heavy.
Overall, the show is a crisp watch that hugs feminism, talks of how openness is crucial when it comes to sexuality and complex female friendships. The show looks like it may have derived its inspiration from various sources but nowhere does it fail to establish its own authenticity, its modern take and tone while gazing through the lens of a generation that grew up swiping left and right.
Cast: Diana Gómez, Silma López, Paula Malia, Teresa Riott.
Having been recently renewed for its fourth and final season, the show was initially released during the COVID times in 2020 and has an IMDb rating of 6.6/10.
A novelist with the support of her three best friends navigates her creative and marital crises, where each character is steering their own path to success. This Spanish- language series is a versatile one that provides ample space for the growth of all its female characters. Hence, facilitating a storyline with powerful female characters. The series looks at female friendships and the power they hold, how pivotal a relationship is and its challenges and how the road to success is a tumultuous yet rewarding one.
If you are a young adult in their 20s or even a millennial in their early 30s, it is highly likely that you will find aspects of this show relatable in terms of messy decisions, fighting with your girlies and ultimately accepting them. This evokes the empathy in the viewers as they realise the characters are only human for making the decisions that they are making. There is nothing quite like the girls exploring in this age group that is set to be titillating with the plethora of sex scenes that are lined up for the viewers in the show.
Cast: Casimere Jollette, Barton Cowperthwaite, Kylie Jefferson, Brennan Clost, Michael Hsu Rosen.
Though Netflix cancelled this show that came out in 2020 for the show failed to bring its way the desired views required to continue it for another season. But, for the one season that is out, it can get you hot and heavy and might have you reaching for…*clears throat* with its steamy scenes.
The story is of an affluent and privileged New Yorker named Bette who finds herself staring at a dangerous edge in her as she attempts to escape the shadow of her ballet-star sister. Her perfect sister June, on the other hand, is desperate to bag a lead role this year or her controlling mother will slash her dreams of dancing forever.
The show is often criticised for introducing several characters and storylines that it is seemingly a daunting task for the viewers to keep track of all the plots that unfold in the story. This extends to the guys the female characters are sleeping with and it often becomes confusing to pinpoint which guy is which. Beyond this, the dancing sequences of the show are truly mesmerising. Nevertheless, if sex and skin is what’s on your mind, this show can really deliver.
Cast: Manolo Caro, Cecilia Suárez, Paco León, Dario Yazbek Bernal, Aislinn Derbez.
The show, originally in Spanish, runs across three seasons and has an IMDB of 7.6/10. The show is a dark comedy where a wealthy matriarch engages in displaying a facade of a perfect family once the affair of her husband is made public by the mistress, who in turn exposes the dirty details of the family as well.
Sex and dark comedy? Does it get any better?
The show is circumferenced by grand interiors, tasteful styling and artistic flair which is done in order to see the high-society de la Mora family and their pretence of being a rich family. The House of Flowers is a game changing series in Mexican television in the modern day as it features not only dysfunctional families but also birth characters that are rooted in a diverse range of sexual preferences and gender identities. It plays on feminist themes and could serve as a good break if you are looking to binge something that looks at sex beyond the heteronormative lens.
Cast: Maite Perroni, Erik Hayser, Jorge Poza.
Another Mexican television production ruling in the thriller genre with an IMDb of 6.5/10. It is a story of a weekend getaway for married Alma that is writhing in passion, only for it to end in tragedy which leaves her questioning the truth about those near and dear to her.
When the series premiered on Netflix in 2020, it managed to get over 35 million views in less than a span of the month, making it easily the most-watched non-English show at the time. Guess, people were just too horny during the pandemic to do anything but binge on the sensual and mature themes with a streak of erotic scenes lying in between plot twists.
If you have an appetite for a lot of sex scenes with a little bit of story in between, this might be the perfect watch for you.
As you have read through the list, you must’ve made up your mind about watching one of them. So, put on your loungewear and let the bingeing begin. What are you starting with first? Don’t forget to share with us in the comments!
By Deepali Verma
