Ferris Wheel Sex Is On The Rise, From ‘Emily In Paris’ To ‘Sex/Life’ And Beyond

In recent years, TV shows have taken sex scenes to new heights and brought viewers along for truly some wild rides. (Literally!)

I’m talking about Ferris wheel sex, of course! You know, sex on hydraulic-powered metal amusement park rides? The concept may sound unconventional, inconvenient, uncomfortable, and downright dangerous. And it is! But Ferris wheel sex is on the rise on-screen, so it’s time we talk about the spontaneous, sexy TV trend and the serious, unsexy real-world consequences it carries.

Ferris wheels have been around since the 1890s, so for all we know, Ferris wheel sex has been happening for over a century. The giant rides have long-served as flashy, statement-making, famously romantic spots for pivotal scenes in television and film, and though Ferris wheel sex likely transpired on-screen before 2018, Insecure undoubtedly elevated the concept in its memorable Season 3 episode “High-Like,” during which Issa (Issa Rae) and Nathan (Kendrick Sampson) get it on in a Coachella Ferris wheel car. The scene was so steamy that other shows may have been too scared to try to top it for a while. (And for good reason!) But like how the car on a Ferris wheel can only stay at the top for so long, other Ferris wheel sex scenes have risen to take its place. In the past six months alone I’ve counted not one, not two, but THREE Ferris wheel sex scenes that suggest making love up above is back, baby!

In Emily In Paris Season 3, which hit Netflix on December 21, 2022, Emily (Lily Collins) and Alfie (Lucien Laviscount) get intimate in a Ferris wheel car to celebrate the end of Emily’s unemployment. As one does! Early in Episode 4, while reading Emily’s “unemployment to-do list,” Alfie pauses and says, “You dirty little minx! ‘Have S in the middle of the day? Is S what I think it is?” Alfie is clearly referring to “sex,” but Emily cheekily replies, “Yeah! Steak frites!” Later in the episode, after Julien (Samuel Arnold) and Luc (Bruno Gouery) tell her that “everyone” has sex on the Grande Roue De Paris at the Place de la Concorde, Emily gets her job back and texts Alfie a photo of the Ferris wheel as a hint to meet her. After hopping into a car together, she says, “You in the mood for some steak frites?” and the two start making out in prep for a four-minute sex sesh. Ooh la la!

I figured we would chalk Emily’s Ferris wheel sex up to the romance of Paris, but in March 2023, the adventurous boinking returned in Sex/Life Season 2, Episode 4. After making up from a fight, Billie (Sarah Shahi) and Majid (Darius Homayoun) go to town in a caged, colorfully-lit car of Coney Island’s famous Deno’s Wonder Wheel, built in 1920 and labeled “one of the most romantic rides in the world.” All of the making out, undressing, thrusting, and moaning was made significantly less sexy for viewers because Sex/Life spliced the Ferris wheel sex scene with footage of a woman giving birth, but those two did the deed on the ride! And that’s all that matters.

The saying goes “Two’s a coincidence, three’s a trend,” so I vowed not to shine a spotlight on Ferris wheel sex unless a third scene presented itself within the year. And would you believe my beloved Apple TV+ comedy The Big Door Prize gave Ferris wheel sex a shoutout in its Season 1 finale on May 17? Fate. The episode finds Deerfield residents celebrating at Deerfest, a carnival complete with rides and all sorts of fun stuff. Shortly after Dusty (Chris O’Dowd) and Cass (Gabrielle Dennis) attempt to reclaim their spark on the Ferris wheel, the town experiences a blackout that brings the ride to a concerning halt. As a lightning storm brews overhead, trapped residents start to panic, except for noted threesome fan, Hawaii (Emily Topper), who screams up at Dusty and Cass from two cars below, “Did the power go out?! We were having sex.” Dusty sums up my Ferris wheel sex feelings exactly by screaming, “In a moving Ferris wheel? Jesus Christ!”

I see why the spontaneity and defiance of having sex on a Ferris wheel, a ride that is most certainly not intended for sex, might be appealing and exciting. But does the thrill really outweigh the risk? You may feel differently if you’re in an open seat (as seen on The Big Door Prize) vs a closed-in, more spacious gondola (as seen in Insecure, Sex/Life, and Emily In Paris scenes) but regardless of the seat situation, bumping and grinding in a metal cart suspended in the air seems needlessly dangerous. Not to mention uncomfortable! And in real life, Ferris wheel sex can also get you arrested for indecent exposure! Think of the children!

Having sex on the rides may be a rising TV trend, but it’s not advisable in real life. If you’re horny for some Ferris wheel sex, live vicariously through those risk-taking characters, but PLEASE keep your IRL romantic Ferris wheel moments wholesome and rom-com-worthy, like Love, Simon.