Deep in the marrow of the scorching summer of 2023, the first season of The Ultimatum Queer Love was bestowed upon us by Netflix — a bevvy of couples who’d reached a crossroads in their relationship wherein one wanted to get married and the other didn’t and both were willing to allow Netflix to destroy their lives in an effort to resolve this situation.

One of the many humans who participated in Season One, Mal Wright, worked in casting for Season Two and now works here, at Autostraddle/For Them. She shared with me, Riese, in an exclusive impromptu interview just now conducted over Slack, “I really commend the people who decided to participate in the second season, because you watched the first season and still were like, we’re gonna do it. I think that’s a really brave thing to do. You watched the queer people season and the straight people seasons and were still like ‘yeah, I’m gonna do it.‘”

These braver-than-the-marines lesbians will be debuting at the bottom of pride month: The Ultimatum: Queer Love Season 2 will premiere on June 25th, 2025. The first chunk of episodes will drop that day and the next chunk will be bestowed upon us on July 2nd. And yes, somehow famously heterosexual host JoAnna Garcia Swisher is returning to host. This is unfortunate considering there are at least 250 queer comics desperate for gigs who would do a really fantastic job hosting this program!

Six queer couples will have the chance to go on dates with all the other people participating in the experiment, pick a new partner, move in with that partner for a “trial marriage” and then reunite for a “trial marriage” with each other, after which they have to decide to either get married or move on. Also everybody will be having their trial marriages in the same apartment building.

Meet The Cast of The Ultimatum Queer Love Season 2

AJ & Britney

together five years // follow aj on insta // follow britney on insta

28-year-old administrative assistant/MC AJ isn’t sure about committing to 27-year-old registered nurse / entrepreneur Britney ’cause she fears Britney is more focused on her business than she is on AJ. The business in question appears to be the VitaLuxx Lounge & MedSpa, which offers vitamin therapy, skin care, weight loss and self-care rituals in a soothing Orlando environment. Britney says her “electric chemistry” with AJ began when they first danced together. Furthermore, Britney has a bunny who has been known to wear a bowtie.

Haley & Pilar

together 10 years

follow pilar on insta // follow haley on insta

These two have been together for ten entire years, which means they’ve been dating since they were 19 years old, apparently meeting as orientation leaders after their first year of college. Haley’s a senior food scientist who “chocolatiers” in her spare time and says her “queer identity was shaped by the viral NoH8 campaign.” Physical therapist Pilar is wary of marriage because she thinks it’s a “societal construct” and also her parents aren’t supportive of her relationship or her sexual orientation. Pilar wants to “embrace her own queerness and pursue her dream of building a career as a gay woman in the male-dominated music industry.” Haley wants to drink filthy martinis and get married already!!!!

Dayna & Magan

together 1.5 years

follow magan on insta // follow dayna on insta 

you can watch a little preview trailer of dayna and megan on tiktok

Dayna, 25, is a relationship manager, and Magan, 27, is a business manager, and now Dayna is managing her own relationship and asking Magan to get down to business. Even though Dayna has a self-described avoidant attachment style, she knows she wants to marry Magan! Now! After a year and a half of dating! Unfortunately, Magan is still grappling with her family’s reluctance to accept her queerness which may be playing into some of her hesitations. Also if you want to feel old Dayna’s first queer crush was King Princess which means people whose first queer crush was King Princess are now old enough to give their partner’s marriage ultimatums. 

Ashley & Marita

together three years

follow ashley on insta // follow martia on insta

The biggest age gap in a season where all the couples are about the same age, maybe it’s their five year difference that makes Ashley, 30, ready to settle down, and Marita, 25, holding out for something more. Marita loves Ashley, but she feels like Ashley could be a bit grander in her romantic gestures. It’s also interesting that Ashley’s relationship model is Shannon Beveridge and Cammie Scott while Marita’s relationship model is Alex and Marissa on The O.C. Wishing these two the best of luck, but they might want to seek out some new romance examples!

Kyle & Bridget

together 2.5 years

follow kyle on insta // follow bridget on insta

Kyle, a 30 year old graphic designer, is very particular. They describe their ideal date as a beach picnic — with no bugs and no wind. Kyle’s desire to control nature fits with their desire to get going on their marriage plan. Unfortunately, her partner, 27 year old writer/bartender/Aquarius Bridget, doesn’t see the point. They want to be with Kyle for the rest of their lives, but don’t understand why marriage is necessary. (Maybe Kyle should try arguing tax law.) Bridget says she was turned gay as a two year old when she begged her parents to watch Ellen’s “The Puppy Episode” thinking it would be about puppies. A charming anecdote! 

Mel & Marie

together four years

follow mel on insta // follow marie on insta

Marie and Mel own a food truck together but Marie is also a butler (I have questions about this) and a bartender as well as “the most extroverted introvert there is.” Marie and Mel have known each other since they were teenagers. Marie is ready to get hitched and pop out some babies and spend more time on the sofa with Mel doing her favorite thing — drinking a glass of wine in a robe and watching The L Word. Meanwhile, Mel says they have some “things” they need to “get in order” before they can drive off into the sunset together or take flights to bougie spots.

Well I wonder what will happen next

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