A new queer romance is revving its engine straight into the spotlight — and it’s leather-clad, boundary-pushing, and unapologetically filthy. Alexander Skarsgård and Harry Melling are set to star in Pillion, a bold gay biker love story already causing a stir ahead of its premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
The film, adapted from Adam Mars-Jones’ cult novel Box Hill, dives headfirst into the intoxicating — and complicated — world of BDSM, love, and queer liberation. At its core, Pillion is a love story with grit: Melling plays Colin, a timid suburban loner whose life takes a sharp, seductive turn when he meets Ray — Skarsgård’s impossibly hot and commanding biker king.
Queer, Kinky, and Unafraid
Skarsgård — famous for everything from Succession to True Blood — ditches corporate suits for tight motorcycle leathers in this role, embodying a dominant figure who pulls Colin into a world of queer bikers, underground rules, and sexual exploration. And yes, this is not your grandma’s romance: Ray doesn’t just offer Colin a ride — he offers him a new life of submission, intensity, and freedom.
But while Pillion delivers its fair share of kink (and fans of power dynamics are already drooling), it’s not all just about the steamy scenes. The film explores deeper questions about control, identity, and what it means to truly belong in a queer space built on its own rules.
As Colin immerses himself in Ray’s world — described as “a community of kinky, queer bikers taking all sorts of virginities along the way” — he starts to question whether surrendering control is liberating or suffocating. It’s a story as much about personal empowerment as it is about leather and lust.
Queer Cinema Roars Into Cannes
The film, directed by Harry Lighton, has already been selected for Cannes’ prestigious Un Certain Regard section — a space dedicated to innovative and daring cinema. It’s a huge win for queer storytelling, especially one so openly committed to portraying LGBTQ kink culture without sanitizing or explaining itself for a straight audience.
Emma Norton of Element Pictures, the production company behind Pillion, praised Lighton’s fearless approach, saying he is “drawn to risk” and has a knack for finding “surprising complexity in everyday life.” It’s exactly that complexity — the messy, tender, sometimes rough edges of queer desire — that gives Pillion its heart.
The Impact on LGBTQ Representation
In a world where queer stories still fight for mainstream space, Pillion roars onto the scene as a rare portrayal of gay love that doesn’t tone itself down for mass appeal. This isn’t a sanitized, rainbow-washed romance — it’s raw, subversive, and proudly filthy. And for the LGBTQ community, that visibility matters.
BDSM and kink have long been a vital part of queer culture, often misunderstood or stigmatized by outsiders. Pillion dares to celebrate that culture on the big screen, reminding audiences that queer love comes in many forms — tender, rough, dominant, submissive, but always valid.
For many viewers, especially queer men and people involved in BDSM communities, seeing their stories told with honesty and respect is a powerful act of representation. The film challenges mainstream norms while celebrating the liberation found in choosing your own rules — leather, chains, and all.
Coming Soon: Cannes & Beyond
With A24 distributing the film in the US, Pillion is already shaping up to be one of the most anticipated queer films of 2025. No theatrical release date has been announced yet — but one thing is certain: when Pillion hits screens, it’s going to leave tire marks on the heart of queer cinema.
And honestly? We’re ready to ride.