2019 has found plenty of ways to end the decade with a bang [1] . . . and we mean that literally. The year's sexiest scenes [2] from TV and movies have ranged from the sultry, pining slow-burns to the out-and-out steamy. The scenes that have heated up our screens [3] this year cover every genre, from rom-coms [4] to sci-fi and fantasy and even a musical. We've seen unexpected pairings [5] and forbidden hookups alongside relationships we've been dying to see for years!
There have been so many romantic, swoonworthy, and outright sexy moments on TV [6] and in movies this year that it's challenging to narrow it down to just a few. But that's exactly what we've done, putting together a cross-section of the very best of the year. Keep reading for our picks for all the sexiest scenes from movies and TV in 2019!
Game of Thrones
After being separated for years, Gendry and Arya meet again for the first time as adults, and their chemistry is decidedly adult too. They share a few heated glances and flirtatious comments, but in the end, it's Arya who decides to take matters into her own hands (literally) when she approaches Gendry the night before the Battle for the Dawn, flirting with him and matter-of-factly asking him to sleep with her [7] before they possibly both die in battle. In a marked departure [8] from most Thrones sex scenes, their hookup is sweet, honest, and lets Arya take charge, building on their friendship and attraction in an organic and relatively healthy way.
Rocketman
Anyone who saw Rocketman — or who knows their music history — knows that the relationship between Elton John and his first manager John Reid doesn't end well. But at the beginning, we've got this sexy scene that sets Elton's first time sleeping with a man against his song "Take Me to the Pilot." Not only is it steamy, but it's historic: this was the first gay sex scene in a major studio film.
Roswell, New Mexico
After a season full of complications for the sci-fi show's leading duo, Max and Liz finally get some room to breathe — so, naturally, they use that time to take their relationship to the next level. It's equal parts funny, sweet, and sexy, especially when Liz asks Max to use his superpowers to "bond" them with a handprint so that they can literally feel the emotions the other is feeling.
Grey's Anatomy
Amelia and Link's steamy first hookup is vintage Grey's, but with a playful wink at itself: the pair set out some terms at the beginning, mainly clarifying that this is just "alternative pain relief" between two people who are "insanely pretty," as Amelia (and the entire viewing audience) wryly notes. It's an unexpectedly hot moment for an unexpected pairing [9], and we love it even more for being the start of one of the best couples the show has seen in years.
Game of Thrones
Jaime/Brienne fans had long ago given up realistic hope that the duo would ever actually have a chance to act on their years of emotion and sexual tension. And yet, in the aftermath of the battle against the Night King, that's exactly what happens. Jaime witnesses Brienne's discomfort at a drinking game during which Tyrion "guesses" that she's a virgin, and he follows her to her room. What follows is a surprisingly tender scene, in which Jaime eases Brienne's nerves about her lack of experience with the quip, "I've never slept with a knight before."
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
It's telling that this manages to be one of the sexiest scenes of the year without having any actual sex in it. Midge Maisel and Lenny Bruce [10] have been friends and comic sparring partners for over two seasons, but in an extended night-out sequence in the new third season, their chemistry goes from playful to downright sizzling. "You're staring," she tells him. "So are you," he replies, before they share a sultry dance and a realisation that neither of these comic geniuses can think of a single funny thing to say about it. Although they, ultimately, don't decide to take things further that night, the moment where Lenny puts Midge's hand on his neck as she burrows closer is one of the most swoon-worthy things to happen on screen all year.
How To Get Away With Murder
Anyone who thought marriage would turn Connor and Oliver boring got proven wrong very quickly with this scene. Looking to blow off some steam during the latest dangerous investigation, they make a hookup app profile as a couple and decide to bring over a hot new guy for some three-way sexy times. It's as steamy as anything this show has ever shown, but also oddly sweet, like when Connor plants a kiss on a nervous Oliver to calm his nerves.
Roswell, New Mexico
From the first episode of the Roswell reboot, no one has had more intense chemistry and emotions than on-and-off loves Alex Manes and Michael Guerin. When Alex shows up at Michael's place to hash out some of their long-held emotional baggage, what results instead (skip to 1:36 in the video above) is a swooningly romantic declaration ("I never look away, not really"), then a sexy hookup packed with a decade's worth of emotions (and soon followed by an achingly intimate morning-after scene).
Suits
It took eight seasons to finally get Harvey and Donna really together, but the result was one of the sexiest and most romantically satisfying TV scenes of the year. After finally realising what he feels for her, we get a classic running-to-tell-her scene as Harvey rushes to Donna's place, walks in without saying a word, and promptly kisses her up against a wall. It's a moment that's all the better for the years of waiting to get to it.
Grey’s Anatomy
What is it about the lifts at Grey Sloan Memorial that make them such a perfect spot for the show's signature sexy moments? Stuck in a stalled lift together during a massive storm, Meredith and Deluca talk about their respective famous-but-troubled surgeon parents, and end up in very close quarters [11]. Deluca flirts intensely with Meredith in Italian, only to have her reveal that she took Italian in college and has understood every sexy promise to "kiss [her]... and not ever stop."
Booksmart
The hookup between Amy and her crush Hope really captures the equal parts lust, nerves, and pure awkwardness of "first times." It's a slight twist on the classic argue-til-they-kiss trope, and the embarrassing, slightly gross way it gets cut short doesn't take away from the sweetly sexy nervous energy of these two figuring out just how much they really are into each other.
The King
Netflix's drama was based on Shakespeare's plays and real-life English history, but this was no stuffy costume drama. Early on, we get a sequence of Prince Hal's life before the throne, full of drunken shenanigans and more than a few hookups with whatever women are willing. It's pure medieval party boy debauchery, and the movie certainly doesn't shy away from the future king's no-strings-attached sexy-times.
Veronica Mars
Hulu's Veronica Mars took full advantage of the greater freedoms afforded in streaming vs. traditional broadcast network, complete with the steamiest that Logan and Veronica have ever gotten. When Logan attracts some admirers on the beach, Veronica jumps into the fray pretending to be another stranger who's offering sex for some help moving — and Logan, of course, banters right back and "lets" her take him home. What follows is proof that "LoVe" haven't lost their chemistry [12] in the years since we last saw them; their reunion hookup is equal parts sexy, playful, and sweetly intimate.
Someone Great
Netflix's three-pronged rom-com is one of the sexy sleeper hits of the year, packed with adult-only dialogue and some surprisingly steamy scenes. There's Matt and Blair's impromptu hate-sex office hookup, of course, but the more emotionally charged moments come courtesy of Jenny and Nate, whose relationship crumbles in the first scenes of the movie but whose flashbacks prove just how good (and intensely sexy) their relationship was.
