Shared Rooms (Rob Williams, 2016) USA

Shared Rooms is a 2016 independent gay romantic comedy directed and written by Rob Williams, focusing on three interconnected stories of gay men navigating family, love, and sex during the Christmas to New Year's week in Los Angeles. The film runs 75 minutes, holds an IMDb rating of 5.8/10, and features ample nudity alongside holiday themes like adoption and hookups.[1][2]

## Plot Overview
The ensemble narrative weaves three plotlines that converge at a New Year's Eve party. A married couple, Laslo (Christopher Grant Pearson) and Cal (Alec Manley Wilson), unexpectedly takes in Cal's teenage nephew Zeke (Ryan Weldon), kicked out by his parents for being gay. Roommates Julian (Daniel Lipshutz) and Dylan (Robert Werner) share a bed after Dylan's trip cancels and Julian rents out his room via an LGBTQBnB listing, revealing mutual crushes. A hookup between Sid (Chloe Jade Skye, as Justin Xavier Smith) and artist Gray (Alex Neil Miller) deepens amid Gray's traumatic backstory of childhood abduction.[3][4][5][6][7][2]

## Cast Highlights
- Daniel Lipshutz as Julian Lucas
- Alex Neil Miller as Gray Smith
- Christopher Grant Pearson as Laslo Forsina
- Alec Manley Wilson as Cal McDonald
- Robert Werner as Dylan Van Der Hoten

The cast delivers amateurish but earnest performances, with leads selected partly for nude scenes.[2][1][3]

## Critical Reception
Reviews praise its lighthearted "Holi-gay" vibe, positive endings, and queer holiday rarity, calling it a "sweet candy cane" diversion despite corny jokes, tonal shifts, and contrived twists. Critics note flaws like weak acting, intrusive music, and objectification, but appreciate the horny farce over sterile romcoms.[5][8][7][1][3]

## Availability
Stream on Prime Video, Tubi, or Apple TV; produced by Guest House Films.[6][9][1]

[1](https://the-avocado.org/2023/12/11/lgbt-movies-shared-rooms-2016/)
[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5106400/)
[3](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/shared-rooms/cast/2030569292/)
[4](https://fruitymovies.com/2023/01/06/shared-rooms/)
[5](https://queerfilmreviews.com/reviews/shared-rooms/)
[6](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/shared-rooms/umc.cmc.smaej1s4hpvts25npepyk2f4)
[7](https://rectangularview.com/2023/12/07/movie-review-shared-rooms/)
[8](https://letterboxd.com/fuchsiadyke/film/shared-rooms/)
[9](https://www.facebook.com/groups/274553133758514/posts/1314541866426297/)
[10](https://letterboxd.com/film/shared-rooms/watch/)