hello! i recently attended a panel on live action BL, and they recommended your blog for all things BL. i'd love to get into more queer shows to watch. this is oddly specific, but do you have any shows with a strong plot where one or more of the love interests is famous? anything else goes. (bonus points if they knew each other before they/either of them became famous, it's a favorite trope). thank you, and have a good day!!!
Top 10 Celebrity BLs!
I love oddly specific questions. I'm the human BL recommendation algo, and I'm ready! Although like most algos I sometimes get it way wrong. I will do my bestest.
Hello, WELCOME!
BLs with a strong plot where one of the love interests is famous, bonus for the "known since childhood" trope
I fixed your request, since in BL we just can't expect strong plot and "strong" plot is super objective anyway. I put these in order of my personal preference and noted if it breaks your criteria.
Ready? Here we go!
To My Star
(Korea 2021 Viki)
Hwang Da Seul directing this show about a neurotic actor (actual puppy) who takes refuge with a grumpy chef resulting in sparks, cooking lessons, and LOVE! It’s is a touch quirky to get into, but utterly charming once it hits its stride. This is the ultimate grumpy/sunshine pairing plus the most appealing light-filled kitchen of our dreams. I adore this show so much. Limited use of BL tropes makes this feel more of a sweet contemporary gay romance between an actor plagued by scandal and the chef who accidentally adopts him, but the gentleness will appeal to fans of the BL genre.
Doesn't have much plot and they did not know each other before, but my only 10/10 on this list.
Cosmetic Playlover
(Japan 2024 Gaga)
It's a classic office BL about the older workaholic who loves his job and the younger upstart who unexpectedly loves his boss. It’s a hyung romance where everybody is extremely earnest and sweet and pretty about everything. Except our seme, who is slightly unhinged and a little obsessed in all the ways one likes best from Japan. Utterly charming unexpected gem of a show. What fun!
The seme was once a famous model but left the business for harassment reasons. Again, light on plot and they didn't know each other before.
Lovely Writer
(Thai 2021 YouTube)
Thailand criticizes itself and the BL industry while simultaneously giving us classic seme/uke with great chemistry in a one-two punch of “we love it, but are we supposed to? and must we think this hard, yet enjoy it SO MUCH?” This show won’t appeal or make sense to those who don’t already have at least some Thai BL watching experience.
What Lovely Writer does, at heart, is re-exame what Thai BL has done to queerness, but in a very gentle way that has more to do with Thai BL growing up than any actual queer authenticity. It’s not parody or pastiche, but it is self reflective and trying to correct for some chronic mistakes. Whether it is ultimately successful in this matter is going to depend on the watcher’s relationship to BL and queer identity. But that’s what makes this show beautiful, interesting, and thought provoking. And I, for one, applaud the effort even if I didn’t personally connect to the characters.
This one satisfies all your criteria, but if you are new to Thai BL you should watch others first.
My Beautiful Man AKA Utsukushii Kare
(Japan 2021 Gaga)
One of the most Japanese BLs to release in the last decade, as weird and as messed up as any 2000′s yaoi: emo af and hella warped, entirely true to itself with no attempt made to modify its POV for modern sensibilities or current BL fandom. It used seriously old school problematic and kinky tropes, like whipping boy, for a truly uncompromising piece that also manages to hit up themes of communication, consent, and self acceptance. It’s a wonderful BL but uniquely dirty and harsh, in the best possible way - Japanese cinema, uncompromising. I lost my mind over the ending.
For actual celebrity status you will need to watch all 3 installments (this is the first season). But it has the tone I think you're after. They kind of are kids when the story starts so this is following them pre-fame into adulthood.
My Personal Weatherman AKA Taikan Yoho
(Japan 2023 Gaga)
This style of live action yaoi really only works from Japan. Basically: boys who fell in love in college end up living together but are so repressed they don't realize they're in love. It's higher heat than we usually get from Japan's HEA stuff, and that aspect is also very well done, but it leaned into the "why don't they just talk for fuck's sake?" trope which is only exacerbated into undiluted frustration by the fact that they're already fucking.
It's great, but watching requires more patience than usual, even for Japan. That said it's also bruisingly romantic. Emphasis on bruise.
This one where they have known each other since college, and the plot is... odd and maybe absent, ya know, Japanese BL.
* ThamePo
(Thai 2025 YouTube) Watch this first! Also if no longer on YT check Viki, iQIYI, or Gaga
The boyband idol romance I've been waiting for from Korea, only Thailand did it instead. Quintessentially Thai and very GMMTV with good production values, great chemistry, and a solid support cast. It also was a hung romance mostly driven by external conflict and a found family reunion trope so I didn’t mind (too much) when that romance thread felt secondary. I loved it (except, of course, the singing).
This is it. This is the one you're probably looking for. They didn't know each other before, tho.
Unintentional Love Story
(Korea 2023 iQIYI)
OMG the plot! Uke forced into a totally understandable betrayal, falling in love despite himself, put into a corner he can't get out of, the AGONY, the PAIN in those gorgeous eyes. Gah. Okay, so: A boy loses his job due to trumped-up corruption charges accidentally discovers his ex-boss's favorite artist, now a recluse. Evil manager offers him his job back, if he can convince the artist to rejoin society. Instead, they fall in love.
I found the artist a bit stiff and reserved but Gongchan (maknae of B1A4) is a fucking GIFT - he carried this show (which I do not expect from the idol element). He was luminous with extraordinarily expressive eyes, just drown in the emoting abyss. The external conflict, social tension and pressure is complex and beautifully executed, plus Korea gave us legit side dishes (NOT a love triangle, hally-fucking-luya).
Everything but the childhood. The best plot on this list, but the celebrity recluse bit might not be the kind of fame you want. Still... I loved it.
Wish You: Your Melody in My Heart
(Korea 2020 Viki)
Set in the music industry featuring a talented singer and the pianist who falls in love with him (and his music), subtle and achingly adorable. High production, low heat, short run, very tame, and Korea, so all the pretty. Slow burn and lots of pining.
He isn't quite a celebrity... yet. And they didn't know each other before.
* Love Stage!!
(Thai adaptation of Japanese original 2022 YouTube?)
This BL surprised me with its charm. The acting was good, the leads were appealing, support cast on point, and the production values high. It followed the original manga story arc relatively closely: boy (now famous actor) falls in love with girl as a child, grows up to discover girl is actually a very pretty boy. Although there are some quintessentially Thai changes that mellowed, softened, and extended the romance arc.
One of the things I’ve always appreciated about this story is that the climax is about coming out as a celebrity couple as well as gay. I like the examination of the nature of celebrity versus privacy, and the contrasting kinds of closets.
And I love that they depicted two couples with two different versions of this choice. A solid and enjoyable show.
Winner winner chicken dinner. This one satisfies ALL your criteria.
Also, if you like it there is a Japanese version, an anime, and the original yaoi.
My Stand-In
(Thai 2024 iQIYI)
Stuntman Joe dies on the job and wakes up in the body of another Joe with an entirely different life. But Joe just starts repeating the mistakes of his previous self - love, work, play. Including falling back in love with rich kid (now famous) actor Ming who used and abused him as nothing more than a toy bf in the past.
I enjoyed the experience of watching this show, I looked forward to it every week. I thought everybody did a great job with it and in it, and I liked that is was something substantially different for Thai BL. But it was divisive and left me feeling more sanguine than happy. It's not really a revenge narrative (what I wanted) nor was it a romance (what BLandia expected). I spent most of this show just very very sorry for poor Joe. But if you like your celebrity gays messy, it doens't get much messier than this.
The plot is... different, and they knew each other before just not in childhood.
BONUS
Deep Night
(Thai 2024 iQiyi)
It's about a host club and all the gay boys in it and some stuff that's not important because… PEOPLE OF EARTH WE HAVE A HONEST REP OF POLY IN A BL. Stand up and raise your hands in prayer to the Thai BL gods because sure as shit no one else was ever going to give this to us. For that alone this show gets 8/10 from me. Bonus Lesbian moms and great kisses.
Okay so the celebrities are the top performers at the club and there is no plot, but I have decided it ranks, so there.
Sirs Not Appearing In the Top 10
FC Soldout - almost made it, washed up actor + up-and-coming football player
First Note Of Love - washed up musician and talented young composer
Happy Ending Romance - it's just, not really a BL, celebrity author and betrayal!
Happy Merry Ending - dito
Love is Better the Second Time Around AKA Koi wo Suru nara Nidome ga Joto - the famous person is a professor/author, reunion romance that is about lost childhood love
Behind Cut
Ocean Likes Me
Vice Versa - in one reality one of them is a famous actor but that's not the point
At 25:00, in Alaska AKA 25 Ji, Akasaka de - you might like this one
City of Stars - this might be a good one for you if you're willing to try a Thai pulp, satisfies most of your criteria
First Love Again - he's a famous novelist but that's not really relevant
I Became the Main Role of a BL AKA BL Drama no Shuen ni Narimashita: Crank In Hen - it's in the title
Kabe Koji AKA Kabesaa Doujin Sakka no Neko Yashiki-kun wa Shounin Yokkyuu wo Kojirasete iru - this is an idol romance, but also no real kisses
My Esports Genius Brother - very very odd, no plot, and it's China censored so... oddly I have a soft spot for it anyway
Oh My Assistant - famous writer again
Pit Babe - famous sports star and a wild plot
You Are Ma Boy, EM LÀ CHÀNG TRAI CỦA ANH - idol romance with a cafe boy, it's adorable but very Vietnamese poor quality, stil an old favorite of mine
Kiss X Kiss X Kiss - the "idol series," these are shorts from Japan, 3 of them feature idols in a band together having a secret affaire
Codicils
Shows that feature a celebrity but I rated 6/10 or lower are not on this list. But add more in comments if you like.
I left celebrity chefs off this list, because I think that's not quite what you are looking for.
This is up to date so far as I and my spreadsheet of doom can determine as of March 2025. Only included completed BLs as of that month.
(source)