Next year, when The Eternals finally hits cinemas across the world (COVID permitting, of course) it will introduce the first out-LGBTQ+ superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Phastos is an immortal, an alien race of celestials who existed long before humans, and will be played by Brian Tyree Henry (Joker). The character, who isn’t LGBTQ+ in the comics, spent time in Ancient Greece and was often mistaken for a god until his memory was erased and he became Phillip Stoss, working in a garage in Germany.
It’s not entirely clear yet what the plot of The Eternals will be, though it’s been revealed Phastos will have a husband and share a on-screen kiss with his partner. It’s a significant step for the MCU in terms of LGBTQ+ representation. The Russo Brothers claimed they introduced the first gay character in Avengers: Endgame but fans were disappointed when it turned out to be… well, basically nothing. On top of that, earlier this year Kevin Feige annouced that the MCU’s first transgender character would be introduced “very soon” but has remained tight-lipped on exactly when and where. Still, with Phastos leading the way, it raises the question; which other LGBTQ+ characters could the MCU introduce? These are a few already rumored to be on their way, some that could be on the horizon, and how they might fit into the action…
Tessa Thompson, an openly bisexual woman herself, has been incredibly vocal about getting Valkyrie, now the ruler of New Asgard, a girlfriend in the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder. She told a packed house at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019 that finding her “Queen” would be the “first order of business”. Many fans have wondered if this might be Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers (A.K.A Captain Marvel), even leading to the couple’s name “Valcarol” showing up online. This was furthered when both Larson and Thompson began retweeting fan art showing the two characters together!
In a 2013 comic, Valkyrie was revealed to be bisexual after she began a relationship with Annabelle Riggs, an archaeologist. Given that New Asgard is set up in Norway and there’s plenty of old Norse temples and artifacts to be found amongst the picturesque landscape it’s not hard to imagine an archaeologist being drawn to the area. That’s if Larson and Thompson don’t convince Feigie to make “Valcarol” canon before then.
Still, whether it’s Carol, Annabelle, Jane Foster (as some fans are predicting online), or a new character entirely, it looks likely that Valkyrie will rule with a woman by her side.
In the comics, Wanda and Vision retired from hero life and went to live a quaint suburban life. As if from nowhere, Wanda discovered she was pregnant and gave birth to twins: William and Thomas. It turned out the twins didn’t really exist, but instead they were created from her imagination as her husband, a robot, wasn’t able to conceive children. However, because Wanda was so powerful, she had made souls for these two twins which were then absorbed into two ordinary teenage boys, one of which is Billy Kaplan.
Billy inherited his abilities similar to his ‘mothers’ and became Wiccan, a powerful sorcerer who could teleport, use electrokinesis and telekinesis, as well as fly. He was a primary member of The Young Avengers (rumored to be high on Kevin Feigie’s to-do-list) and began dating his team member Hulkling (more on him later) shortly after joining. He was also a candidate for Sorcerer Supreme after Doctor Strange was declaimed from the role.
Wiccan and Hulkling are one of the most celebrated LGBTQ+ couples in the comics and have been involved in significant plotlines like Secret Invasion and Civil War. In 2012, Hulkling proposed to Billy, and now, after a seemingly long engagement, the two married secretly in 2020.
Wiccan’s introduction could already be set in motion. In the first look at Wandavision on Disney+, during the 2020 Super Bowl, Wanda and Vision, dressed in nineties sitcom attire, watch as two dummies are spat into the air from cribs in front of them. Could this be William and Thomas? Could Wanda, in her mania over losing Vison in Infinity War, have manifested the twins as a means to create the perfect life? Does this mean that Billy is on his way to the MCU? It looks very likely and rumors have been swirling that openly gay popstar/actor Troye Sivan is up for the role.
After both Captain Marvel and Spider-Man: Far From Home, it’s clear that the Skrulls, a shapeshifting race known to infiltrate other planets, are here to stay in the MCU. As such, Teddy Altman, a Skrull sent to Earth to hide for his protection, seems like a feasible new addition to the franchise, right?
Teddy, who has superhuman strength, stamina, and durability as well as the characteristic shapeshifting of a Skrull, lived with his adoptive mother on Earth until he joined The Young Avengers. His actual parents were the Skrull Princess Anelle and Mar-Vell (who was gender-swapped and played by Annette Benning in Captain Marvel) which he only realized when a Super-Skrull showed up and revealed his true lineage. There’s room to edit this story slightly and maybe Benning’s Mar-Vell has had a child with a Skrull Prince, or who is to say that it is women who carry the children on these alien planets?
Seeing as Teddy is a Skrull (and his connections with Carol Danvers’ origin story) he could be introduced in the next Captain Marvel movie or the recently announced Nick Fury series for Disney+. If, or rather when, The Young Avengers come into play, Hulking is a key member and so will likely be part of that team alongside his boyfriend Wiccan as well as Ms. Marvel, Kate Bishop, and Cassie Lang who are already in the MCU.
In X2, there was a humorous scene in which Bobby Drake (Shawn Ashmore, The Boys) came out to his family… as a mutant. “Have you tried not being a mutant?” his mother responded, in a nod to a question a lot of LGBTQ+ kids have heard. However, in 2015, Bobby Drake came out in the comics, and it became a massive story in the mainstream media leading even The New York Times and The Guardian to report on it. Until some playing around with timelines ended up putting Iceman back in the closet – which really upset fans.
Initially introduced in 1963 as a founding member of the X-Men, Bobby Drake was revealed to be gay when Jean Grey read his mind and confronted him about it. Bobby, considering it a huge invasion of privacy, became defensive but later admitted it was true. Later, in a Miami Nightclub, Bobby met Romeo, an Inhuman, and the two fell in love.
Given that Disney now owns the rights to the X-Men, it’s only a matter of time before they start to show up in the MCU, and including this modernized version of Iceman feels like a no-brainer. There’s even some room for a fascinating discussion on the act of “outing” queer people – something that can have catastrophic real-world effects. There have been rumors that Shia Labeouf (Transformers) is in talks to take on the role while openly gay actor Colton Haynes (Arrow) has also thrown his hat in the ring on social media. Fingers crossed that, in the not too distant future, Iceman will come out as a gay and a mutant in the MCU.
Arguably one of the most recognizable mutants thanks to her prominent and memorable appearances in previous X-Men franchises, Mystique has been bisexual in the comics since 1981. She has frequently been paired with Irene Adler, (a.k.a. Destiny) as the couple who shared a common desire to see the world change significantly from what they were seeing. Initially, the character creator Chris Claremont had planned for Destiny and Mystique to be the parents to Nightcrawler, however, with it being the 1980s, he was prohibited from doing so by Marvel policy. As such, she became Mystique’s “friend”, and the two spent a lot of time together. Later, they would go on to adopt Rogue and raise her together.
Mystique, often depicted as the leader of the Brotherhood of Mutants, played a major part in the past two incarnations of the X-Men on screen. In fact, in Days of Future Past, she was elevated to the level of Professor X and Magneto, making that at-odds duo into a trio. Her allegiances are often slippery but she’s an incredibly complex character who very much embodies the idea of an anti-hero. It would be interesting for the MCU to make such a famous character LGBTQ+ in their movies and it would be nice for them to go back and rectify something their previous policy disallowed. By letting Mystique and Destiny become a fully-fledged couple in the MCU, they could be true to Claremont’s original intention and provide a kick-ass bisexual character at the same time.
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