2023 was the year of queer cinema — from campy rom coms like Red, White & Royal Blue to instant cult classics like Bottoms and heartwarming dramas like All of Us Stangers. But to me, most necessary in the queer canon, are stories about queer adolescence like Heartstopper, Sex Education, and Young Royals.
So many queer people didn’t have the adolescence they were promised. Sure, in some places, queerness is less stigmatized. But even in the US, a record number of anti-LGBTQIA bills were proposed, and the anti-gay fear-mongering is frankly out of control. Which is all the say: queerness is still outside of the norm.
The definition of marginalization is that systems aren’t built for you. While that manifests in all areas of your life, it’s never more agonizing and angst-inducing than when you’re in high school. Full of hyperbolized emotions, aggrandized self-importance, and so many hormones, being a queer high schooler is an agonizing theater of angst. The yearning! The pent-up desire! The repression! I wouldn’t go back if you paid me … unless it was to Young Royals’ Hillerska Academy.
Some people wish they went to Hogwarts, some people wish they could go to Nevermore Academy. I wish I could enroll in Hillerska. This exclusive Swedish boarding school is the backdrop for the greatest love story ever told. If you’ve never seen Young Royals, congratulations: you’re about to embark on the greatest journey of your life. It’s about a Swedish prince (Edvin Ryding) who falls in love with another at his boarding school. But that’s where the cliches end.
What is Young Royals about?
Young Royals has become an international phenomenon for its completely novel portrayal of high schoolers — especially queer high schoolers. As the creators have emphasized, the show doesn’t make sexuality the problem. It’s always the external pressures to conform that are the problem. It also highlights themes of anxiety, mental illness, social class, addiction, race, and more.
But of course, the central theme is queer love. And while I too, was a queer person trapped in a boarding school in the middle of nowhere, I didn’t have a queer love affair with the future leader of my country. They call it a gay, teenaged version of The Crown. If that’s the case, Simon (Omar Rudberg) is my personal Princess Diana. Despite the larger-than-life stakes, what sets the show apart are its intense emotions. More understated than your typical teen melodrama, it’s startling real while also being aspirational — which is perhaps why it’s connected to audiences across the world.
Don’t get me wrong, it does have its share of drama. But more like the simmering sexual tension and high-stakes relationship chaos of White Lotus than, the eye-roll-inducing fabrications of The Idol. And that drama has had me screaming, crying, throwing up for the past two seasons. Finally, Young Royals season three, the final season of the series, is coming to Netflix. And I don’t know if I’m ready.
Young Royals: Season 3 | Official Clip | Netflixwww.youtube.com
When does Young Royals Season 3 come out?
Young Royals season 3 comes out on March 11th, with the series finale coming out a week later on March 18th. Someone schedule a wellness check for me. After how long I’ve been teased, tormented, and kept waiting by this show, I might spontaneously combust before I even make it to March. Play the series finale at my funeral.
How many seasons and episodes are there in Young Royals?
There are 12 episodes of Young Royals available now across two seasons. The third season will also be six episodes — the first five dropping on March 11th and the finale on March 18. Given how much was packed in the trailer, I don’t know how our boys will deal with the fallout of the previous seasons while struggling with obligation and classic teenage gossip.
And of course, the hardest truth to contend with: There won’t be a season 4 of Young Royals. And I doubt there’ll be a spin-off — unless Netflix pulls an XO Kitty. One can only dream. So savor this sweet anticipation while it lasts. After the final season, it’ll be goodbye to Wilhelm and Simon forever. I can only hope that Omar Rudberg and Edvin Ryding see insane career growth after this. Will they make like Charles Melton from Riverdale or Jacob Elordi from Euphoria and become household names? The show is an emotional tour de force — so I don’t doubt their talents will take them far.
Young Royals Season 3 Trailer:
After waiting so long, it’s finally here. Our sneak peek into this season’s drama. Be prepared to weep.
Watch the Young Royals Season 3 trailer here:
Young Royals: Season 3 | Official Trailer | Netflixyoutu.be
Don’t text. I’ll be rewatching Young Royals Season 1 and Young Royals Season 2 on Netflix until March 11th.