As queer characters become increasingly commonplace in mainstream cinema, more and more movies fall back on the “gay reveal” — it’s when a character who had been presented as straight suddenly makes it known that he or she is in reality gay or lesbian. It’s often thrown at us as a joke, but sometimes the gay reveal emerges in dramatic contexts (or in contexts that make absolutely no sense at all — but more on that later).

Whether or not the gay reveal is intelligent or offensive, of course, is up to the filmmaker; if a cool character beloved by the audience comes out of the closet, it forces straight viewers to reflect upon their enjoyment of that character. In other cases it’s just a way to create yet another on-screen homo who’s the butt of a joke. And that joke will feature a butt, guaranteed.

Here are 10 notable gay reveals, rated for boldness and out-of-the-blue-ness, measured in our patented Flying Monkey Rating Scale™ of 1 to 5 monkeys. Unavoidably, such a list will include tons of spoilers, so continue reading at your own risk.

Tropic Thunder (2008)

Surprise gay reveal: Rapper Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson)

What’s the story: Chino is one of five actors who find themselves lost deep in an Asian jungle during the disastrous shooting of a big-budget Vietnam War epic. The film begins with Chino (a hip-hop artist) doing a commercial for his energy drink, “Booty Sweat,” featuring lots of hoochie mamas dropping it like it’s hot. But as the actors fear for their lives and begin bonding with each other, Chino inadvertently reveals he’s been pining for a guy named Lance.

Brandon T. Jackson

Cat’s out of the bag: The film ends with Alpa Chino attending the Oscars with his co-stars…and his date, Lance Bass.

Bold or Blah?: Very bold. Alpa proves that gay men don’t have to be stereotypes and can, in fact, be just as brave as their heterosexual counterparts. He also shows that not all gay men of color are flamboyant and/or drag queens, unlike the characters in comedies such as The Longest Yard (2005) and I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (2007), among many others. Alpa’s third-act coming out also makes his previous objectification of women hilarious (while raising the question of how many real-life rappers are yelling about “bitches and hos” while secretly lusting after former boy-band members).

How surprising?: 3.5 Monkeys (out of 5)