Girls Love (GL) is a media genre, featuring girl-on-girl storylines, based in Thailand, that is enjoying growing popularity. Following the massive success of Boys Love (BL) in Thailand, GL is quickly gaining a dedicated, rapidly growing global audience. These female love dramas are Asian dramatic television series, miniseries, or web series featuring romantic relationship between female leads. The popular genre started in Japan and quickly spread to Thailand, where it is flourishing. It has also found its way to Cambodia, China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam.

The genre of romantic Thai dramas has never shied away from celebrating LGBTQ love stories. While Boys Love (BL) series, based on gay stories, have become quite popular in this genre, Thai Girls Love (GL) series have also been garnering praise among the youth over the last few years.
 

This popular film niche highlights the country’s acceptance of the LGBTQ community, the broader spectrum of entertainment content and the progressive mindset of Thai society. In fact, in January 2025, the country legalized registering same-sex marriages as well.

Each of these series revolves around different aspects of love between two women that can make your heart flutter. Whether you are looking for high school romance or unexpected love stories at the workplace, there is something for everyone. Stellar performances and stunning cinematography are added bonuses that make each title binge-worthy.

In Thailand especially, GL couples have become media sensations. The three most famous acts are: 

Thai Girls Love Series

Freen and Becky Made Girl Love Possible

Charting the Rise of Girls Love TV Romance in Thailand
List of Girls Love Dramas

Interview with Freen and Becky

Thai GL Series That Must be on Your Pride Month Binge-List
Freenbecky: Watching Themselves on Film

--Production Quality: Modern Thai GL series are noted for their high production, focusing on both dramatic storylines and aesthetic visuals.
--Themes: Ranging from office romances to school dramas, these series explore various facets of female relationships.
--Key Actors: Freen Sarocha and Becky Armstrong are among the most prominent faces of the genre.
 

Thai Girls Love (GL) series are experiencing a meteoric rise, establishing Thailand as a leader in Asian LGBTQ media with popular, high-quality romantic dramas. Pioneered by hits like Gap: The Series (2022), the genre has expanded to include diverse stories like 23.5 and The Loyal Pin. These series are characterized by strong production values, emotional storytelling, and widespread international appeal.
 

--GAP The Series (2022): Groundbreaking series starring Freen Sarocha and Becky Armstrong that launched the modern Thai GL boom
--23.5 (2024): Popular high school romance
--The Loyal Pin (2024): Highly anticipated historical drama
--Blank the Series (2024): Starring Faye Peraya and Apasra Lertprasert
--Pluto (2024): Notable, highly anticipated series

Sam & Mon: Earned It

Stars of the T-Pop Entertainment Industry

Meet Freen Sarocha and Becky Armstrong (Shipped as FreenBecky). Freen and Becky, also known as Sarocha Chankimha (Freen) and Rebecca Patricia Armstrong (Becky), are two talented lesbian Thai actresses, singers, and models who have achieved considerable popularity for their roles in the GL (Girls Love) series “GAP: The Series.” They have won the hearts of fans worldwide with their exceptional performances and on-screen (and off-screen) chemistry.

Freen and Becky have been involved in various film and music projects and have received awards and recognition for their contributions to the entertainment industry. Their successful careers and engaging personalities have made them beloved figures in the Thailand entertainment scene.

“GAP: The Series” debuted in late 2022 and continued into early 2023, becoming a significant milestone in the GL genre within the T-Pop or Thai entertainment industry. It received praise for its depiction of lesbians as the main couple and has been well-received by both domestic and international audiences.

Rebecca Patricia Armstrong

Rebecca Patricia Armstrong, commonly known as Becky Armstrong, is a talented Thai-English actress, singer, and model, born in 2002 (She has a Thai mother and a British father). Becky made her debut in the Thai entertainment industry in 2020, showcasing her acting skills in the TV series “TharnType 2: 7 Years Of Love,” where she played one of the supporting roles. Her impressive performance in the show garnered attention and set the stage for her promising career.  Continuing her journey in the entertainment world, Becky took on more projects like “Secret Crush On You” in 2022, and “GAP: the Series” in 2022, further establishing herself as a rising star in the industry. With her talent and versatility, she has already become a popular figure among fans and industry insiders alike. As her career continues to unfold, audiences eagerly await her future projects and performances.

--Rise of Thai GL: Following the 2022 success of the series GAP (Pink Theory), Thailand has established itself as the center of live-action GL, moving beyond its previous focus on Boys Love (BL).
--Key Themes and Influences: The genre blends influences from Japanese yuri (manga/anime), Chinese baihe (subculture), K-pop shipping culture, and Western WLW (women-loving-women) content.
--Industry Growth: Multiple series are being produced, with significant economic impact stemming from sponsorships, merchandise, and fan events.
--Cultural Impact: GL acts as a source of queer representation, providing a space for women-centric stories. It has also influenced fashion, with prominent GL couples (such as Lingling Kwong and Orm Kornnaphat) becoming brand ambassadors.
--Diverse Representation: While Thai GL is currently dominant, other Asian regions contribute to the broader landscape of queer media.
 

The industry's growth is fueled by a dedicated, largely female, and queer-identifying audience, expanding its reach through platforms like YouTube and, in some cases, global streaming services like Netflix.
 

LingOrm: On the Movie Set, Filming a Scene

Couple Commentary

Having worked together on multiple GL dramas, how have these shows shaped your understanding of love?

Freen: GL has taught me that love is freedom. Everyone should be able to feel love or be loved without hiding, explaining, or worrying about how their love will be. Love makes us soft, more honest with our own hearts, and that’s something I always remind myself of all the time.

Rebecca: What it teaches me is that love can be anything. Love can be anyone, with whoever you feel comfortable with. For me, it’s always about who makes me want to better myself, who I feel comfortable with, who I want to grow with, and who I think is a safe space. Because I feel that the world around us is very hectic, very controlling—it’s a lot at once. So I feel like the person you choose to be beside you should make you feel relaxed and somewhat at home.

Becky Armstrong and Freen Sarocha Fall in Love

Girls Love Phenomenon

Thai GL Explosion and More...

The Girls Love (GL) phenomenon in Asia has evolved from a niche subculture into a booming mainstream media industry, notably driven by the recent surge of live-action dramas from Southeast Asia inspired by growing demand from fans for more female-female leads.

Origins and Regions...

The genre centers on romantic relationships between female characters and is known by different names depending on the region:

While Japan provided the template through anime/manga, Thailand transformed GL into a massive cultural export:
 

--Key Milestone: The 2022 release of GAP: The Series (Pink Theory) is credited with starting the modern trend, reaching millions of viewers worldwide.
--Rapid Growth: The industry is expanding at an average rate of 300% year-over-year, with over eight major series airing by mid-2024 and dozens more in production.
--Economic Impact: Experts estimate the GL segment could generate up to 2 billion baht for the Thai economy.
 

Unique Characteristics and Cultural Impact

--Realism vs. Fantasy: Unlike early BL, which often catered to heterosexual women's fantasies, modern GL frequently targets queer women and strives for more authentic, respectful representation of the WLW (Women Loving Women) community.
--"Shipping" Culture: The phenomenon is fueled by intensive fan engagement on platforms like X (Twitter) and TikTok, where fans "ship" on-screen couples (e.g. FreenBecky, LingOrm, FayeYoko ), leading to sold-out fan meetings across Asia and Latin America.
--Social Change: These dramas often explore themes like family expectations, coming-out struggles, and marriage equality, contributing to increased LGBTQ visibility and acceptance in conservative societies.

Uranus 2324: Thai Movie Trailer

Sam & Mon: Call Out My Name

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