New gay rom-com The Prince’s First Love goes viral, drawing Red, White & Royal Blue comparisons
"Red, White & Royal Blue walked so The Prince’s First Love could run, honestly," viewers go crazy for the new queer series
By Aaron Sugg
’Tis the season of gay romances, and The Prince’s First Love is the latest series to take the queer world by storm after its series teaser went viral, with viewers comparing it to Red, White & Royal Blue.
The ReelShort series, made up of short, mobile-friendly episodes, follows Lucas and Prince Nicholas as they move from school rivalry to friendship… and then to something far more complicated.
Starring Greg Duffy as Lucas and Andrew Tong as the prince, the pair navigate their romance amid school life and cultural differences, while trying to keep their connection a secret.
“Nicholas is torn between his royal duty and his growing feelings” – The Prince’s First Love synopsis starring Greg Duffy and Andrew Tong
The official rom-com synopsis reads: “Every glance, every brush of hands, pulls them closer… but Nicholas is torn between his royal duty and his growing feelings for the boy he once called an enemy.”
“Neither dares to speak the truth, until the moment it can’t be hidden,” it adds, prompting social media users to compare the series to Nicholas Galitzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez’s queer romance Red, White & Royal Blue.
Directed by ReelShort alum Ruixi Royce Gao, episode length vary, some running under 90 seconds, with 72 episodes in total.
The Prince’s First Love is filmed in the same school as Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Actor Duffy also shared behind-the-scenes footage on Instagram, revealing that the show uses the same secondary school location as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, alongside other teased, playful scenes.
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles-based actor spoke about the positive response to the show less than two days after its release. “Oh my God,” he said.
“The response to The Prince’s First Love has been amazing, and it hasn’t even been out 48 hours yet,” he added, prompting a flood of praise in the comments.
“Red, White & Royal Blue walked so The Prince’s First Love could run” – one user compared the two queer stories
“3.8 million views in less than 48 hours, damn, this is fire,” one user wrote. Another compared it to the Amazon Prime queer cult classic, saying: “Red, White & Royal Blue walked so The Prince’s First Love could run, honestly.”
Gay romance series have taken 2025 by storm, with the coming-of-age queer marine series Boots arriving on Netflix in October, followed by Heated Rivalry in November on Crave and HBO Max.
It was announced on 15 October that Boots would not be renewed by Netflix for a second season, despite online praise and strong reviews, including a 90% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Heated Rivalry however, continues to gain momentum, becoming Crave’s number-one original series of all time and topping HBO Max’s daily charts for most-watched TV shows in the US.
Viewers can watch episodes one to nine of The Prince’s First Love on YouTube, but need the ReelShort app to access all episodes.
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