Joe Locke is ready to enter his twink death era!
In a joint interview with fellow Marvel star Charlie Cox for Variety’s Actors-on-Actors, the pair reflected on how performers are often cast in roles that closely align with their real-life personalities.
“As you work more and more, the industry allows you to try more things,” said Cox. “And you want to do different characters and play parts that you wouldn’t necessarily have been cast in early on. Daredevil is a really good example of that for me. He’s so different from who I am.”
Locke, who memorably shot to fame as Charlie Spring in Heartstopper, admitted that he’s still mostly sent auditions for “the same skinny twinks.”
“Which is great,” he said. “And I’m really good at playing that, because I am a skinny gay twink. I’m struggling now [because] I want to do the opposite of that.
“I’ve been trying to put on weight recently. I just can’t do it. I know it’s like, “Oh, my metabolism’s too fast …” In 10 years, I’m sure I’ll be like, “God, I wish!”
Last year, Locke made his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in Agatha All Along as Teen, who was later revealed to be – spoiler alert? – Billy Maximoff, the son of Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany).
After securing the role, Locke assumed he would be paid to “put on loads of muscle”: “And they’re like, ‘Oh, no, no…’ I was like, ‘Great, cool. Thanks, guys.’”
“I’m so worried about being boxed in,” he continued to tell Cox. “I’m really grateful that I’ve been able to play loads of great queer characters, but I don’t want that to define my career.”
Locke named Rustin star Colman Domingo as an inspiration, praising him as an “incredible openly queer person” with a “diverse” range of roles.
“He plays the abusive husband in The Color Purple, then plays an amazing character in other things. Or Jonathan Bailey,” he said, adding: “What I like about [my character on Agatha] is his queerness isn’t a defining feature.
“The whole point of representation is to change people’s opinions about things. You can’t do that without positive representation where it’s just a part of them. It’s great that Marvel felt willing to have that sort of representation on-screen.”
Locke is set to reprise his role as Charlie in the upcoming Heartstopper film, which will serve as a conclusion for the beloved series.
The official synopsis for the film reads: “Nick and Charlie are inseparable, but with Nick preparing to leave for university and Charlie finding new independence at school, the reality of a long-distance relationship begins to weigh on them.
“Doubts take hold, and their relationship faces its biggest challenge yet. Meanwhile, their friends are also navigating the ups and downs of love and friendship, confronting the bittersweet challenges of growing up and moving on. Can first loves really last forever?”
Filmmaker Wash Westmoreland, who’s best known for Still Alice and Colette, is set to direct the film.
Visit here for everything we know so far about the Heartstopper film.
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