“A bit of both,” he said. With just those four short words, Tom Hiddleston’s Loki confirmed that he is sexually fluid, not that that was ever really in doubt. The trickster god has always embodied the same fey energy given off by numerous Disney villains like Scar and Jaffar, who also read gay by knowing viewers. But we all know that there will be even more LGBTQIA+ representation in the Marvel Cinematic Universe going forward. This was confirmed by Marvel Studios’ executive vice president of film production Victoria Alonso.
At the premiere of Black Widow, Alonso stated:
“It takes time, we have so many stories that we can tell. We will empower those that are. We’re not changing anything. We’re just showing the world who these people are, who these characters are…There’s a lot that we have coming up that I think will be representative of the world of today. We’re not going to nail it in the first movie or the second movie or third movie, or the first show or second show, but we will do our best to consistently try to represent.”
With the possible exception of Thanos, Loki has been the most popular villain in the MCU and has appeared in the most movies (for the record: Thor, Avengers, Thor: The Dark World, Avengers: Age of Ultron (deleted scene), Thor: Ragnarok, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame). So it was a pretty bold move to out him on his Disney+ show. But according to Alonso, this decision wasn’t really that big a deal.
“I have to be honest with you, it’s not a big deal. It is what it is when it suits the character. We’re not going to do it because it’s politically correct or incorrect. It is what it is. Don’t forget, we follow our comics. We try to follow them quite to the tee. So in the comics, this is who he was.”
Co-director Joe Russo played the first openly gay character in the MCU, appearing in Avengers: Endgame, but his character, a part of a support group fronted by Captain America, didn’t even have a name, so… seriously, who cares?
But we have been promised that more representation is coming. And a bit has already slipped in, even though many may not have realized it.
First up, Brian Tyree Henry’s character, Phastos, will appear in the upcoming Marvel movie, Eternals. This character will be openly gay, with a husband played by Haaz Sleiman, and children. (Not a big fan of domesticating gay characters but that’s just me.)
Speaking to Logo, Sleiman said:
“For me, it’s very important to show how loving and beautiful a queer family can be,. Brian Tyree Henry is such a tremendous actor and brought so much beauty into this part, and at one point I saw a child in his eyes, and I think it’s important for the world to be reminded that we in the queer community were all children at one point. We forget that because we’re always depicted as sexual or rebellious. We forget to connect on that human part.”
He added that the duo will share “a beautiful, very moving kiss” on screen, which will be edited out of the versions shown in Russia, China, and other places where they hate gays.
Eternals will open in theaters on November 5, 2021.
There was a scene shot for Thor: Ragnarok which would have hinted at Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) being a lesbian or bisexual, but it was cut from the final film. It has been confirmed, however, that Thor: Love and Thunder will spotlight her search for a queen to rule over New Asgard at her side.
Thor: Love and Thunder will open in theaters on May 6, 2022.
Speaking of deleted scenes…
A romance between Dora Milaje members Okoye (Danai Gurira) and Ayo (Florence Kasumba) was cut from Black Panther. This would have reflected their relationship from the comics. Instead, in the movie, Okoye was given a male love interest, W’kabi, played by Daniel Kaluuya. Ayo resurfaced in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which will hopefully lead to her getting more screentime in upcoming projects, and maybe her sexuality will be explored.
Both will likely appear in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which is expected to hit theaters on July 8, 2022.
Xochitl Gomez will portray America Chavez, a dimension-hopping lesbian character from the Young Avengers comic book, who will debut in live-action in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which opens on March 25, 2022.
Speaking of the Young Avengers, two other queer characters from that team have already appeared but most viewers that aren’t familiar with the comics would probably never have guessed their sexuality.
Yep, lil Tommy and Billy are queer. Billy (played on WandaVision by Julian Hilliard), a.k.a. Wiccan, is the most visible in the comics and has been in a relationship with his fellow Young Avenger Hulkling since they debuted in 2005’s Young Avengers #1. Tommy/Speed (Jett Klyne) didn’t appear until Young Avengers #10, and was initially depicted as straight. But since then, he has been shown to have a sexual relationship with another male character, Prodigy. So he is at least bisexual.
It definitely appears that Marvel Studios is building toward the formation of the Young Avengers either in a movie or a Disney+ series. Depending on how long it takes for that to happen, Hilliard and Klyne may or may not return in the roles of Billy and Tommy.
Finally, in recent comics, it has been revealed that Star-Lord is gay, which was apparently a reveal that creators have been trying to get printed for ten years. Don’t expect the movies to ever depict that. First of all, it’s one thing to have a minor character be gay. It’s another to have a gay character at the center of a major franchise like Guardians of the Galaxy. For another thing, the actor that plays him, Chris Pratt is famously a conservative Christian, so don’t expect him to kiss another man in ANY movie.
The completely hetero Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is due to hit theaters on May 5, 2023. Pratt will appear before that in Thor: Love and Thunder.
Of course, there have been other characters that have been queer coded. Fans have read into the relationships between Carol Danvers and Maria Rambeau, and Bucky Barnes and both Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson. Once again, don’t expect Marvel Studios to ever actually play into that.
Of the upcoming LGBTQIA characters coming to Marvel, which are you most excited to see?
