Marvel’s Pride: Tom Hiddleston’s Loki is the studio’s first LGBT lead character, the Disney+ series director confirmed on Twitter – so can we expect more representation in future too?
Hours after the third episode of Loki premiered on Disney+, the show’s director Kate Herron confirmed the titular character is bisexual, making Loki the first queer lead character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
In the episode, Tom Hiddleston’s Loki has a conversation with Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino), an alternate-reality female version of himself, about his love interests.
“What about you? You’re a prince,” Sylvie says to Loki. “Must have been would-be princesses. Or perhaps another prince?”
“A bit of both,” Loki responds. “I suspect the same as you.”
Loki director Kate Herron confirmed the character’s sexuality in a tweet, adding that “it was very important to me, and my goal, to acknowledge Loki was bisexual”.
She added: “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.”
But the “God of Mischief” isn’t the first LGBTQ+ character to appear in the MCU. Valkyrie, from the 2017 film Thor: Ragnarok, played by Tessa Thompson, was also confirmed to be bisexual.
“She’s bi,” Thompson wrote in a tweet at the time. “And yes, she cares very little about what men think of her. What a joy to play!”
Di Martino also alluded that the use of lighting in the episode resembled the bisexual pride flag.
“And look at that beautiful lighting,” she wrote, along with a screenshot of the scene between Loki and Sylvie.
Fans on Twitter reacted positively to Loki’s bisexuality.
“Obsessed with the way the entire episode was bi lighting,” wrote @nebulasloki. “Not just a scene but the whole entire planet. Go big or go home in true Loki fashion.”
“Them: ‘Why is it so important that we know #Loki is bi? It’s not relevant to the story!’” wrote @CodySDax. “It’s so you learn to stop having microaggressions every time a queer character is allowed to exist and even casually talk about their experiences.”
“We don’t have to justify our existence,” the Twitter user added.
“#Loki being confirmed bisexual during Pride Month? So true of them,” wrote @wintersloki.
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- ‘It was very important to me, and my goal, to acknowledge Loki was bisexual,’ said TV show director Kate Herron after his sexuality came up in the third episode
- Tessa Thompson played Valkyrie – who is also bisexual – in MCU film Thor: Ragnarok, while The Eternals will feature the openly gay superhero Phastos