Tom Hiddleston Talks about MCU’s Decision to Depict Loki as Bisexual

Tom Hiddleston touched upon the LGBTQ+ representation that Marvel showcased via Loki, in a recent episode of the Apple TV+ show, Actors on Actors.

While the mainline MCU movies didn’t shed light on the sexuality of Asgard’s second prince, the 2021 Disney+ show brought a huge, much-needed change in the MCU lore.

Not only did it set a precedent for the variants from the multiverse, but it also gave an insight into Loki’s gender fluidity and sexuality—much of which was already canon in Norse mythology and comics.

In the conversation, Hiddleston spoke about how he had delved deep into the character’s lore in the comics, with a special focus on gender fluidity and sexuality. Loki’s identity was “an ancient part” of him, and the actor felt “privileged” to have portrayed it in the Disney+ show.

“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.”

Hiddleston added that it was the need of the hour for MCU to reflect the 21st century in all its aspects.

“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 honor to bring that up. It was really important to me. It was really important to [director] Kate Herron and [showrunner] Michael Waldron, and I’m pleased that we could bring it into our story.”

In the Disney+show, Loki met his female variant, Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino), whose powers focused more on magic. She asked him if he had taken an interest in any “would-be princesses or princes“.

Loki’s response, “a bit of both,” marked the MCU’s first ‘big’ official representation of the LGBTQ+ community. 

However, critics called out the depiction for not being under as much of the spotlight as it deserved. For a major show, and an even more popular character, to represent a poignant characteristic via a minor interaction seemed lackluster.

In what might not be a surprise, the MCU has fallen prey to both—lack of LGBTQ+ inclusion and inclusion of the same.

While Brian Tyree Henry’s Phastos from Eternals was openly gay as well, Marvel lost a huge chunk of profits from the Gulf as they banned the release of the superhero movie for its LGBTQ+ representation. (Doctor Strange 2 met the same fate.)

With Loki Season 2 in development and Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie confirmed to be bisexual, it does seem that MCU is trying to rack up its LGBTQ+ representation roster.

About Loki

Loki is an American TV series created by Michael Waldron for Disney+ and Marvel. It is based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name and is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with events of the series taking place after Avengers: Endgame.

Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as Loki along side new faces like Owen Wilson, Gugu Mbatha Raw, Wunmi Mosaku, Sophia Di Martino, Richard E. Grant, Sasha Lane, Eugene Cordero and Erika Coleman.

After stealing the Tesseract in Avengers: Endgame, Loki is apprehended by the mysterious Time Variance Authority (TVA) and their Time-Keepers. Loki is given a choice between fixing all the timelines he broke with the Tesseract and death at the hands of the TVA.

News Source: Variety