Marvel Studios is in the middle of a massive start to Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe thanks to the theatrical debut for Black Widow and the final episodes of Loki coming to Disney+. Through all of this, the studio is making a more concerted effort to bring a certain level of representation to the Marvel movies and TV shows, something that fans have wanted for some time.
The most recent example of this came in Episode 3 of Tom Hiddleston's Loki, in which the God of Mischief confirmed in a conversation with Sylvie that he is bisexual. Having this become MCU canon was a huge moment for the LGBTQIA+ community which was heralded by the show's director Kate Herron, and it seems to be only the start of Marvel continuing this trend over the coming years.
This was reconfirmed by the studio's top executive, who recently shared how important this was for arguably the biggest franchise in pop culture.
KEVIN FEIGE TALKS REPRESENTATION
Marvel President Kevin Feige spoke with Rotten Tomatoes about the reveal of Tom Hiddleston's titular character being bisexual in Episode 3 of Marvel Studios' Loki.
Feige explained how "representation is important across the board" with Marvel Comics having "charted the path" for what the MCU hopes to do. Commenting on how there are "many [LGBTQIA+] characters" in the pages of the comics, he made it clear that he and his team "want to showcase that on the screen as well."
The late Stan Lee had spoken about how "Marvel represents the world outside your window," which means that "there are all different types of people" with different backgrounds and personalities. Feige described it as being "of utmost importance" that people see this in their projects and know that it "represents the true world outside their window" in every way possible:
"Representation is important across the board, and the comics has charted the path in almost all ways for what we do in the MCU. And in the comics, there are many [LGBTQIA+] characters and we want to showcase that on the screen as well, we want to bring those characters to life on the screen. As Stan Lee used to say, Marvel represents the world outside your window, there are all different types of people with all different types of places with all different types of preferences, and we want that reflected in the MCU and in our fictional world as it is in our real world. So it is of utmost importance that when people go in and see one of our films or log onto Disney+ and watch one of our series that it represents the true world outside their windows when it comes to the types of people portraying the heroes and the characters."
"THE WORLD OUTSIDE YOUR WINDOW"
The entertainment industry as a whole has made a more concerted effort towards representation in movies and TV shows, which is continuing through Marvel Studios and its upcoming projects. While Joe Russo's cameo role in Avengers: Endgame was confirmed to be gay, the Loki reveal made for a massive moment with a character that's been featured for more than a decade.
While Marvel is still approaching this venture carefully and making sure representation comes the right way, Feige's comments reaffirm that it's always on his mind as well as those of the top executives.
Fans are well aware that more stories surrounding LGBTQ characters will be coming from Marvel Studios over the coming years, although no specifics are known about who particularly will be included or when they will arrive. With characters like Billy Maximoff from WandaVision and Valkyrie from Thor: Love and Thunder set for major roles going forward, this should arrive sooner rather than later.
