In the third episode of his self-titled Disney Plus series, Loki’s admission that his romantic past included “a bit of both” was a small step for an Asgardian but a giant leap for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This throwaway line enabled the God of Mischief to become the first openly queer protagonist in the MCU. The news unsurprisingly meant a great deal to fans, and it turns out it meant a lot to Tom Hiddleston, who plays Loki.
During Variety’s Actors on Actors series interview, Tom Hiddleston discussed Loki’s bisexuality, saying it isn’t a huge surprise since the character has been fluid about his gender and sexuality since the original Norse myths. Hiddleston was “pleased and privileged” when this facet of his persona was brought into the MCU. As he explained:
“Back from my early days of researching the character in the ancient myths, the identity of Loki was fluid in every aspect and in gender, in sexuality. It’s a very ancient part of the character, and I think I thought about it. … It hadn’t emerged in the stories we’ve told. And I was really pleased and privileged, actually, that it’s come up in the series.
The actor went on to admit that Loki’s one-liner was only the beginning of the battle for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the Marvel universe, stating that the franchise must “reflect the world we live in” better than it does now. Touching on Loki’s sexuality was apparently at the heart of what Hiddleston, the series’ director, and its showrunner wanted to do with the series. The star continued:
“It’s a small step. There’s so much more to do. But the Marvel Cinematic Universe has to reflect the world we live in. So it was an honour to bring that up. It was really important to me. It was really important to Kate Herron and Michael Waldron, and I’m pleased that we could bring it into our story.”
While some people, including ex-Doctor Who showrunner Russel T Davis, have complained about how poorly Loki’s bisexuality was explored on screen, Kate Herron defended the moment. However, she conceded – much like Hiddleston – that there’s much left to be done with queer representation in the MCU.
As Loki’s second season starts production this month, these themes will hopefully be further explored as the trickster’s story progresses.
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