Sometimes, it’s a joke like on Teen Wolf where Stiles asks ( openly gay, criminally underutilized) Danny Mahealani “ Do you find me attractive?” in a moment played for jokes. Queerness, in media accused of queerbaiting, is usually limited to easily missed (or dismissed) interactions between characters. One of the biggest issues with queerbaiting in media – mostly television shows and films – is that it usually occurs in a space where there are no other queer characters shown in successful relationships or where the queer (ish) relationship isn’t the one that was used to draw in fandom. Think about how Disney has had multiple “firsts” when it comes to gay characters in their tentpole films – all characters whose sexuality isn’t explicit – and has queer coded characters like the titular character in Luca and any number of villains… while initially supporting anti-queer laws like Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Mostly, fans see queerbaiting as a way for an industry to take advantage of fans and benefit from a hunger for queer representation without actually providing any meaningful representation.
