Post-queer sexualities? Exploring the (re)definition of male’s heteronormativity in the Netflix show “Élite”

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Spanish Netflix show Élite has been hailed for its progressive storylines and its wide representation of queer characters. In this work, I focus on the relationship between Christian and Polo, two young seemingly heterosexual male students who, in becoming involved in a lust triangle with Carla, Polo’s girlfriend, go on a journey of sexual self-discovery. The queer sexual engagement of these characters is in tension with their struggles for hegemony and assertions of power. Throughout the series, audiences witness the increasing tension and competition between them to prove their superior masculinity. In this article, I use the idea of postfeminism as an analytical tool to explore the ways in which the unfolding of queerness between the young men is framed by conservative ideas of gender and struggles for masculine hegemony. I conclude that the representation of queerness through Christian and Polo’s relationship is shaped by a postfeminist sense making that constructs their sexualities through a post-queer paradigm that simultaneously: 1) redefines heteronormativity through the disruption of normative heterosexual monogamy; and 2) a reconfiguration of queer male sexualities through hegemonic conceptualisations of sex and power.