The 23 Sexiest Movies, Ranked

The reviews for Wuthering Heights are in, and it seems like critics are a bit mixed over where the romantic drama actually lands among the most erotic films of all time. While The New Yorker wrote that Emerald Fennell's interpretation starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi is "uncharacteristically restrained," The Hollywood Reporter called it "unabashedly horny." Until the moviegoing public catches up to decide for themselves, we took it upon ourselves to sort through the movie's competition.

What makes a film sexy besides, you know, the obvious? Call Me By Your Name and Portrait of a Lady on Fire are the most recent additions to the great canon of the sexy movies. Both films are boldly sexual but not overly aggressive in their actual depictions of lewd acts. When compared to films like Eyes Wide Shut or Basic Instinct, we've also seen far less erotic thrillers lately—even if their popularity has never waned. (Just look at the recent success of The Handmaid.)

Some sexy films don't have a single sex scene (In the Mood for Love), while others toe the line between actual porn (In the Realm of the Senses). So, even if Wuthering Heights isn't one of the sexiest movies of all time, these 23 films are inarguably the best.

In Disobedience, Rachel Weisz stars as Ronit Krushka, a photographer who travels home to London after her father dies. While back in town, she runs into her former best friend and crush, Esti. Years earlier, the two women were shunned for their attraction toward each other—and their reunion sparks a passionate affair.

Tttanic's entry is more about one scene in particular, but damn if that scene didn’t define a generation. With the mark of a pencil, the placement of a necklace, and the unforgettable line “Draw me like one of your French girls,” Titanic cements itself as one of the sexiest films of all time, if for nothing else than that hand smacking against a foggy window.

For anyone who has ever had a one-night stand that lingers in the back of your mind, Weekend is the film for you. When two men have a connection after a night of partying, they find themselves spending the next day (and night) with each other and turning a quick fling into a passion-filled weekend that explores both sexuality and romance.

It was the leg crossing, uncrossing, and recrossing that raised eyebrows around the world. Sharon Stone’s iconic role in Basic Instinct has the grit and gravitas to keep the film in distinguished territory while also highlighting just how sexy a thriller can be.

Spike Lee’s 1986 comedy is a classic and a damn good movie to boot, but that’s what this list is about. You can be sexy and elevated at the same time. When Nola Darling finds herself dating three different men, things get as steamy as they do complicated. Make no mistake: Nola is not the type of character to pass on sexual liberation for fear of hurting a man’s feelings.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s ensemble-driven film offers a comic—and at times dark—look at the heyday of the American porn industry in the late ’70s and early ’80s. Boogie Nights also stars Mark Wahlberg the greatest role of his career so far.

Barry Jenkins’s beautifully shot film about a gay Black man coming of age is as sensual as it is poignant. As the film tells Chiron’s story from youth to adulthood, it’s clear that Moonlight is weaving a romantic story that Hollywood rarely recognizes.

Call Me by Your Name tracks a steamy summer between Elio (Timotheé Chalamet), a curious 17-year-old, and Oliver (Armie Hammer), a doctoral student interning with Elio’s father. As the weeks go by, Elio and Oliver find themselves inexplicably drawn to each other. Their journey is a romantic, albeit heartbreaking, journey of self-discovery.

Nagiko (Vivian Wu) is a Japanese model with an usual fetish: words, particularly calligraphy painted on the human body. She finds an eager partner in Jerome, played by Ewan McGregor (who appears in a few full-frontal nude scenes).

Wild Things is notorious for two things: Kevin Bacon’s exposed penis and a threesome between Denise Richards, Neve Campbell, and Matt Dillon. The latter is mostly an excuse to feature the then-unknown Richards topless.

Franck visits a gay cruising beach and takes notice of the handsome Michel—and also that Michel has murdered his companion. In this provocative thriller, Franck must reconcile his lust for passion with the potentially deadly object of his desire.

If you spawned a freaking Vegas Chippendales-esque residency with your sexy movie, you better be on this list. Magic Mike told a memorable story (thank you, Steven Soderbergh, master of all genres), but also ... abs. Right?

Two women (Scarlett Johansson and Rebecca Hall) fall for a painter played by Javier Bardem (I mean, who wouldn't?), unaware that his ex-wife (Penelope Cruz) is about to re-enter the picture as well. Has there even been a more stacked cast?

No, not the dubious Best Picture winner—this is the infamous Crash in which James Spader, Holly Hunter, and Co. get their sexual kicks from car crashes in David Cronenberg’s controversial adaptation of J.G. Ballard’s novel.

In the Realm of the Senses hinges on the relationship of a hotelier and his new employee as World War II dawns on the world. To be frank, the movie borders on legit porn. That might be because it’s a Japanese art film that is ... mostly porn. But it counts as a classic nonetheless!

Is there any language as sexy as French? This stirring historical romance puts that thesis to the test in a lustful story about two women, one a painter and the other her reluctant subject. On a windswept coast, they struggle to ignore the pull of forbidden love, resulting in an unforgettable Gothic romance for the ages.

Arguably the last great American noir film, this ’80s thriller featuring William Hurt and Kathleen Turner hearkens back to the old-fashioned femme fatale films of the genre. It ups the ante with sex scenes that would’ve made Barbara Stanwyck blush.

Have you seen the clay-covered erection from Sex and Lucia? What about the mud bath, or the blindfolded game? If you're looking for a way to step up your sex life, look no further than the film that introduced Paz Vega to the world.

If you’re going to cheat on Richard Gere, Olivier Martinez is as good a choice as any. And that’s who Diane Lane falls for in her Oscar-nominated performance—and it’s not too difficult to see why.

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In the Mood for Love might just be the sexiest movie ever made where no one has sex. Set in Hong Kong in 1962, a journalist and a secretary living next door to each other develop an attraction while their respective spouses work long hours. When they begin to suspect that their spouses are having an affair together, their relationship grows, making for a poignant, provocative story about fidelity, beauty, and youth.

Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman play a couple whose relationship is tested when she reveals her fantasy about another man. In retaliation, the husband wanders through the night, finding himself at a masked ball that soon turns into an Illuminati-esque orgy.

Combine a little bit of heist-adjacent scam with a tinge of homoeroticism and you have The Handmaiden. The film, directed by Park Chan-wook, starts with a ruse to fool a Japanese woman out of her inheritance, but when a hired handmaiden gets a bit closer to her than she imagined, an unexpected relationship forms.

Tenoch and Julio are a couple of horned-up Mexico City teenagers who take a spur-of-the-moment road trip with Luisa, the wife of Tenoch’s cousin. On the way, the young men must face the facts about their friendship as they embark upon adulthood. The film stars Gael García Bernal, Diego Luna, and Maribel Verdú.

This story originally appeared on Esquire.com.

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