Disney’s “Loki” director confirms character is bisexual: “This is now canon”
Loki is the Marvel Cinematic Universe's first major out LGBTQ character
Disney+ series Loki has shown that Tom Hiddleston’s version of the character is bisexual, making him the first major LGBTQ character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The third episode of the time-traveling limited series, which is releasing weekly on Disney’s streaming service, subtly but directly outed Loki as bisexual. (Spoilers follow for Loki.)
During a scene on a train, Loki chats with Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino), a gender-fluid variant of the trickster god.
“On the subject of love, is there a lucky beau waiting for you at the end of this crusade?” Loki asks.
Sylvie says she hasn’t had time for relationships while time-traveling between various apocalypses.
“How about you?” she asks Loki. “You’re a prince. Must’ve been would-be princesses or, perhaps, another prince.”
“A bit of both,” Loki replies. “I suspect the same as you.”
Loki director Kate Herron took to Twitter after the episode was made available for streaming to say it was “very important” that the show portray Loki as bisexual.
“From the moment I joined [Loki] it was very important to me, and my goal, to acknowledge Loki was bisexual,” Herron, who also executive produces the show, wrote. “It is a part of who he is and who I am too. I know this is a small step but I’m happy, and heart is so full, to say that this is now Canon in [the MCU].”
From the moment I joined @LokiOfficial it was very important to me, and my goal, to acknowledge Loki was bisexual. It is a part of who he is and who I am too. I know this is a small step but I’m happy, and heart is so full, to say that this is now Canon in #mcu #Loki 💗💜💙 pic.twitter.com/lz3KJbewx8
— Kate Herron (@iamkateherron) June 23, 2021
Prior to Loki‘s release, it was confirmed that the character would be portrayed as genderfluid, matching Loki’s canonical portrayal in Marvel’s comics.
Eagle-eyed fans noted in a teaser trailer Disney dropped on June 6 that Loki’s sex was marked on an official document as “fluid.”
Tom Hiddleston, who has portrayed Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe ever since the character’s debut in 2011’s Thor, told Out that he has always taken his character’s “fluidity” into mind in his portrayal.
“I’ve known about the breadth of Loki’s identity since I was first cast as the character 10 years ago,” Hiddleston said.
Hiddleston called Loki’s fluidity “really interesting and compelling and very much a part of the fabric of the character,” and said it was “thrilling to get to touch on that this time around.”
Marvel has faced criticism in recent years over its lack of LGBTQ representation. Upcoming film Eternals will feature Tyree Henry’s Phastos, the MCU’s first openly gay hero, and sequel Thor: Love and Thunder will show Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie as openly bisexual.
Marvel was criticized after the release of Thor: Ragnarok for reportedly editing out a scene depicting Valkyrie’s bisexuality and there was widespread backlash to “Grieving Man,” a background character in Avengers: Endgame who was the MCU’s first openly LGBTQ character.
Spider-Man star Tom Holland has supported a gay version of his web-slinging hero, saying that Marvel’s films should “represent more than one type of person.”
And Brie Larson, who currently stars as Captain Marvel, said she wants to see more LGBTQ characters and heroes.
“I don’t understand how you could think that a certain type of person isn’t allowed to be a superhero,” she told Variety in April. “So to me it’s like, we gotta move faster. But I’m always wanting to move faster with this stuff.”
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