Joe Locke isn’t scared to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe! The Marvel star breaks his silence around the controversy surrounding his character in Agatha All Along.
It’s been nearly two years since it was announced that Joe Locke is in Agatha All Along, but very little is known about his role in the MCU. One of the only details fans have is that the Heartstopper star’s character will be gay, making him one of the few openly queer Marvel heroes. When asked about how this felt, Locke admitted that it was a mix of amazement and stress.
“I’ve never really thought about it,” Locke explained in a recent talk with Variety. “It’s one of those things that gets a bit stressful if you think about it too much. But being in a Marvel series is the most pinch me thing. I thought you get cast in a Marvel show, you get paid to get really muscly and hence. ‘We want you to stay small and twink-y’ is basically what they said, in a very corporate way.”
Booking a role with Marvel is one of the most polarizing things in the industry. Some actors only do it for the check, while others find it to be a great honor to portray some of the most beloved characters in spandex. It’s good that Joe Locke seems to be falling in the latter camp with his role in Agatha All Along. However, it seems not everyone is happy about him joining the MCU.
Joe Locke Speaks Out On The Marvel Fandom
Joe Locke has received a lot of hate for his role in Agatha All Along online. Much of it comes from the speculation that he, a non-Jewish actor, might be playing the Jewish hero Billy Kaplan in the MCU. However, other aspects of the hate come from how flamboyantly his character is portrayed in the MCU. While Locke finds this hypocritical, he came into the job knowing how expressive the fanbase can be at times.
Oh, why has Marvel done this campy gay stereotype?'” Locke reflected on the internet’s response to the first trailer for Agatha All Along. “It really annoyed me because I was like, ‘You can’t ask for authentic casting and then be upset if you have a camp character.'”
“I’m fully aware that the Marvel fandom is far less nice than the ‘Heartstopper’ fandom. There’s going to be a lot of people that just hate everything about the character and everything about what I’ve done with it, and I just have to be OK with that.”
“Marvel fans are very open with their opinions. But they’re not in a Marvel show, so [blows a raspberry]. I’m doing the one thing that they really wish they could be doing. Sorry!”
Joe Locke’s role in Agatha All Along was always set to come with controversy. The internet has long critiqued Marvel’s handling of queer people in the MCU, especially given censorship laws in foreign countries. However, at the very least. Locke’s mental health isn’t being impacted by the backlash, which is something that can’t be said for other high-profile stars.
Agatha All Along is set to release on Disney Plus this Fall. Stay tuned for the latest news regarding the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more content!
