Joe Locke in the MCU!
Good for Joe Locke!
News just broke that the ‘Heartstopper’ star has been cast in the upcoming Disney+ show Agatha: Coven of Chaos. According to Variety, Locke joins show lead Kathryn Hahn in the WandaVision spin-off. While we know that Hahn is returning to the titular role, and Emma Caulfield Ford will reprise her role of Dottie, we don’t know what role Locke will play. We also know nothing about the plot for the developing project.
The general response from fans, however, is the growing theory that Locke has been cast to play the superhero Wiccan. In the comics, Wiccan, real name William “Billy” Kaplan, is a reincarnated version of one of Wanda Maximoff’s, aka the Scarlet Witch’s, twin sons. Wiccan has magical abilities like his mother, while brother Thomas “Tommy” Shepherd, or Speed, is super-fast like his uncle Quicksilver.
Welcome to the MCU Billy aka WICCAN . #AgathaCovenOfChaos pic.twitter.com/Uiaz6zl3Rl
— edgar (@EDGRRXXX) November 1, 2022
The character has already appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a child. But fans are excited to see a teenage version of the character. Part of this is due to him being a part of arguably the most popular gay couple in Marvel Comics.
And a popular fan cast of the two characters in the MCU was the two stars of Netflix’s Heartstopper, Joe Locke and Kit Connor. With Locke now cast in this upcoming show, many are wondering if that fan cast is becoming true. Plus, Deadline reports Locke’s role is “a gay teen with a dark sense of humor.” But, again, we don’t know for sure what role Locke is playing.
It’s happening 😈😈😈 pic.twitter.com/3ONfWa0iZm
— Alfredo Rodher (@FredyRodher) November 1, 2022
Yes! Now sign @kit_connor as Hulkling! They are literally perfection as those characters. Even the writer of the #Heartstopper books saw the comparisons and similarities and had the characters dress up as Wiccan & Hulkling! @joelocke03 has to be playing #Wiccan! pic.twitter.com/24yl68Ak9N
— Jeff (@jeffblue19) November 1, 2022
Related: ‘Heartstopper’ Star Comes Out As Bisexual
Twitter Drama
Speaking of Locke and Heartstopper, this news comes just one day after drama in that show’s circles. Locke’s co-star Kit Connor came out as bisexual over Twitter. The 18-year-old returned to Twitter after taking a month and a half off.
“back for a minute,” he wrote. “i’m bi. Congrats on forcing an 18 year old to out himself. i think some of you missed the point of the show. bye.”
But why did the actor say he was forced to come out? For most of this year, Connor has been facing cyberbullying from part of the Heartstopper fandom. After seeing paparazzi photos of Connor with Maia Reficco, his co-star in the film “A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow,” some fans speculated the two were dating.
Not only did some fans claim that Connor was queerbaiting them by liking tweets insinuating that he was not straight and for playing a bisexual role, but they harassed Connor, Reficco, and other Heartstopper cast members with death threats. It got to the point that Kit Connor made that tweet AND Joe Locke deactivated his Twitter account for a few hours.
“You owe nothing to anyone. I’m so proud of you my friend,” Locke tweeted to Connor before deactivating his account and then reactivating it earlier today.
Let’s be real, these people are not real fans but idol worshippers who confuse their parasocial relationship for a meaningful connection. And then through the use of social media, lashed out at the object of their affection, and his coworkers/friends, because he wasn’t “gay enough.” This is about fetishization and biphobia at its core. Let’s not sugarcoat the ugliness that the Heartstopper cast had to face for several months.
With all that in mind, the news of Joe Locke joining the MCU is fantastic. And wildly timed. I mean, what a whirlwind of a 24 hour news cycle! And if we’re feeling that, imagine how Joe Locke and Kit Connor feel! My heart goes out to Kit and my congratulations goes out to Joe Locke. Let’s hope this is the start of many great things for the two. And the end of the cyberbullying.
1. Joe Locke is gay and very much out.
2. He’s perfect for the role of Wiccan.
3. Someday you should check out this website called Google.com. It’s a good place check your facts before you post something.
Um, I sure as hell hope he’s not playing the gay son of Scarlet Witch, first of all Wiccan is suppose to be sexy, secondly they should at least cast a gay actor to play him.
Attractiveness is subjective and many people find him attractive