While it may have been a slow process full of controversy and backtracking, Disney has finally begun putting LGBTQ+ characters at the forefront of their films and TV shows, and allowing their subsidiaries Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm to do the same.

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Despite decades of queer-coded characters and the random appearance of an LGBTQ+ couple in the background here and there, queer couples are starting to show up more and more in Disney entertainment, each one taking small steps to pave the way for the next, whether that's by simply passing by or sharing an on-screen kiss.

10 Bucky and Pronk Oryx-Antlerson ('Zootopia')

Bucky and Pronk in Zootopia

While Bucky (Byron Howard) and Pronk Oryx-Antlerson (Jared Bush) from Zootopia wasn't the first queer couple to show up in a Disney film - that honor going to Oaken (Chris Williams) and his husband Ceiro, who only appear in one brief scene with their kids in Frozen - it was Bucky and Pronk who made the most waves when the film was released.

Bucky and Pronk don't do much in the film except the typical arguing of a married couple, but their mere existence in the film broke ground as the first gay couple to be acknowledged in a Disney film.

9 Vel And Cinta ('Andor')

Larma D'Acy (Amanda Lawrence) and Wrobie Tyce (Vinette Robinson) in Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker
Image Via Disney

Despite the Star Wars franchise's rocky relationship with queer representation that all started in 2009 when it was announced that queer terms do not exist in Stars Wars, as reported by ABC News, a division of The Walt Disney Company. But one installment finally got it right, and it wasn't just a half-hearted same-sex kiss like in Stars Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

The best queer couple in the Star Wars universe has become Vel (Faye Marsay) and Cinta (Varada Sethu) from the Disney+ series Andor, who were first revealed to be a couple when it was mentioned they shared a blanket, and have since been treated like any other couple in the series.

8 Thea and Edie ('Doc McStuffins')

Doc McStuffins

In 2017, Thea and Edie became the first same-sex couple to appear on a Disney Junior show when they starred in an episode of Doc McStuffins, voiced by real-life lesbian actresses Wanda Sykes and Portia de Rossi, respectively.

Thea and Edie are shown to have two children, and spend the episode being helped by Doc McStuffins (Kiara Muhammad) when the family is separated during an earthquake, and while they join a growing list of queer, animated Disney characters, the interracial lesbian couple broke ground for appearing on a show that airs during the programming block aimed at preschoolers.

7 Amity And Luz ('The Owl House')

Owl House

The Owl House has been full of LGBTQ+ representation throughout its three seasons on Disney Channel, but the fan-favorite couple has always been Amity (Mae Whitman) and Luz (Sarah-Nicole Robles), fondly dubbed "Lumity" by their diehard shippers.

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It all started with Amity placing her hands on Luz's shoulders in Season 1, a moment that confirmed the chemistry between the two characters and began a series-long romance that included a partner dance, asking each other out, becoming a couple, and Luz proudly displaying a bisexual flag pin on her beanie and coming out to her mother.

6 Greg And Manuel ('Out')

Pixar Out

Part of the Disney+ shorts series SparkShorts, the short simply titled Out was both Pixar's and Disney's first work to star a gay character. The 9-minute-long animated movie explores a person's fear and hesitancy to come out in a humorous way that includes the main character switching bodies with a dog.

The short stars gay couple Greg (Kyle McDaniel) and Manuel (Caleb Cabrera) in a happy and loving relationship despite Greg's decision to hide it from his parents, and features the first same-sex kiss in a work by Disney-Pixar. A groundbreaking couple for both Pixar and Disney, the short conveys the love between Greg and Manuel on its limited timeframe.

5 Phastos And Ben ('Eternals')

Phastos and Ben in Eternals

In 2021, the Marvel Cinematic Universe finally introduced its first-ever gay superhero, Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry), and he wasn't alone. Phastos was joined by his husband Ben Stoss (Haaz Sleiman) and their son Jack (Esai Daniel Cross) in Eternals, which also included Marvel's first on-screen same-sex kiss.

The husbands are said to have humanized a gay couple in the film, their relationship not being flaunted for the sake of representation nor a last-minute addition to the movie, but simply existing as part of the MCU just like any other couple.

4 Barry And Randall Leibowitz-Jenkins ('The Proud Family: Louder And Prouder')

The Proud Family: Louder And Prouder

Airing in a time of inclusion, The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder has much more to be proud of compared to its early 2000s predecessor The Proud Family, which received backlash in 2005 for referring to a gay character as "sissy," resulting in the episode being pulled from the network for nearly two decades.

But the Disney+ revival learned how to right the wrongs of its past, promising to represent the entire LGBTQ+ spectrum with its characters, most memorably with Barry (Zachary Quinto) and Randall (Billy Porter), who were revealed to be an interracial married couple in an episode focused on LGBTQ+ acceptance.

3 Susan And Cheryl ('Good Luck Charlie')

Good Luck Charlie

It's been nearly a decade since this Good Luck Charlie episode aired, yet Susan (Desi Lydic) and Cheryl (Lilli Birdsell) remain an iconic couple for being the first queer couple to appear in a Disney Channel series. Instead of making a huge deal of the lesbian couple, the episode comically played on Charlie's friend having two moms and Charlie's parents being confused about who they each spoke to about a playdate.

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Despite appearing in only one episode and sparking worldwide controversy, Susan and Cheryl paved the way for future LGBTQ+ characters, like Cyrus (Joshua Rush) on Andi Mack and Cami (Marissa Reyes) on Raven's Home, to proudly appear on Disney Channel.

2 Ally And Jess ('Amphibia')

Amphibia

In 2021, characters Ally (Melissa Villaseñor) and Jess (Dana Davis), together known as The I.T. Gals, became the first queer couple in the Disney Channel animated series Amphibia, whose online bio reads "just two girlfriends" alongside a rainbow flag emoji.

But the characters' relationship was proven to go even deeper than an emoji when the show's character designer Andy Garner-Flexer revealed on Twitter that each gal's color palette represents their sexual orientation, with Ally's being based on the pansexual pride flag and Jess' being based on the bisexual pride flag.

1 Alisha and Kiko Hawthorne ('Lightyear')

Alisha and Kiko Hawthorne in Lightyear
Image Via Disney

After a handful of attempts to include LGBTQ+ representation in their films, Pixar finally took the plunge that Disney wouldn't when they included a same-sex kiss between queer couple Alisha (Uzo Aduba) and Kiko Hawthorne in 2022's Lightyear, though the couple's innocent peck wasn't originally received well.

The way this film gradually progressed Alisha's relationship with Kiko, from engagement to marriage to being moms, was flawless in the way the film approached it like the pair were any other couple despite being the first to break ground as the first same-sex couple to kiss on-screen in a Disney-Pixar feature film.

NEXT: Debby Ryan, Alyson Stoner, and More Disney Stars to Lead LGBTQ+ Horror Movie