Netflix’s cult thriller series Unchosen features a big gay secret
In ‘Unchosen’, Fra Fee’s character Sam blackmails Asa Butterfield’s Adam after an intimate moment (Justin Downing/Netflix)
Netflix released culty thriller Unchosen earlier this month, and it’s been on the Top 10 Series list in the UK since.
And while from the outside it looks to be a dark story of a love affair between a highly religious woman and a mysterious outside, it actually includes a big, gay secret.
Spoilers for Unchosen are ahead, so keep that in mind if you continue to read…
The psychological thriller is set in a religious sect in the UK, and stars the likes of Asa Butterfield, Molly Windsor, Christopher Eccleston, Siobhan Finnernan, and Fra Fee (who is gay in real life, which isn’t the secret we’re talking about).
It follows Rosie (Molly Windsor) as she tries to get away from her abusive husband Adam (Asa Butterfield) and the constraints of the extremely religious group.
She meets mysterious outsider Sam (Fra Fee) when he saves her young daughter from drowning. It’s eventually revealed that Sam is a double murderer and on the run from prison, and he soon infiltrates his way into the group.
While Sam and Rosie do have an illicit affair, and he seems dangerously obsessed with her, the Netflix series also features an important gay storyline between Sam and Adam.
Who is gay in Unchosen?
In the show, viewers meet controlling, abusive Adam, who is eventually promoted to Elder within the religious group.
It’s clear that having sex with his wife, Rosie, is a chore for him rather than something he enjoys, and at one point he even rapes her as a punishment after he decides she’s broken a rule of the group.
However it soon becomes apparent that it isn’t just that he doesn’t enjoy sex with Rosie – he’s hiding the fact that he is gay, which would see him excommunicated from the group.
Viewers learn that Mr and Mrs Phillips’ (Christopher Eccleston and Siobhan Finneran) son was kicked out of the group, and is living with his male partner and their child.
Adam struggles with his secret when attractive Sam arrives, and the scheming convict uses that to his advantage.
At one point, he manipulates a struggling Adam into performing a sex act on him. Taking things one step further, he secretly films the encounter on his phone.
Later in the series, Sam uses the video to blackmail Adam in the finale and it’s revealed in the closing moments that Sam becomes the leader of the group.
Who is Fra Fee?
Sam is very obviously attracted to women – given his romp with Rosie and the fact he murdered his ex-girlfriend because she wanted to end things – so it isn’t clear whether the character is bisexual or just twisted enough to use sex as a way of gaining power. Given what we see of him during the series, the latter seems a very real possibility.
However in real life, the actor behind the character – Fra Fee – is gay. He has appeared in queer roles in the likes of Lost Boys and Fairies, and Prime Target.
The Irish star confirmed he was gay in a 2020 post on X about RuPaul’s Drag Race.
He has been married to EastEnders actor and singer Declan Bennett since 2024.
Unchosen is available to stream on Netflix.
Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.
