TV & Movies
Joe Locke From Heartstopper Wants To Be Disney’s First Gay Prince
“That would be a dream.”
Based on Alice Oseman’s webcomic and novel series of the same name, Netflix’s coming-of-age drama Heartstopper follows the heartwarming love story between two schoolboys, Charlie Spring (Kit Connor) and Nick Nelson (Joe Locke). Locke’s on-screen character has quickly become a fan favourite and the young actor has big dreams. In a new interview, the Isle of Man-born star discussed the kind of roles he’d like to explore next. Top of his list? Being Disney’s first gay prince.
Speaking to the Independent, the actor – who landed his breakthrough Heartstopper role following an open casting of 10,000 people – spoke candidly about how he’d like to be considered for other roles with meaning. “I would love to play the first gay Disney prince,” Locke explained. “That would be a dream.” Shortly thereafter, the actor tagged Disney on Twitter in a post to the article from which the quote is pulled, making his Disney prince goals abundantly clear.
Reflecting on his initial casting in the LGBTQ+ teen drama, which also stars Oscar-winner Olivia Colman, Locke disclosed that he “screamed” after being informed that he had won the part of Nick in the much-loved series, which he describes as a “beautiful story of acceptance and love, friendship and happiness.”
“It shows the really nice things about being queer,” Locke said of the Netflix drama. “I think a lot of queer people growing up feel like they don’t deserve love, because they don’t have access to the same dating pool or support as straight people do. And so Heartstopper is so lovely in that it gives that to queer characters.”
Meanwhile, Locke also told the Independent that he is all for a second season of Heartstopper. Although no announcements have been made regarding series two by Netlfix, Alice Oseman, the writer of the webcomic and novel series on which the drama is based, teased that she has ideas for the future of Heartstopper — which could result in “darker issues” being explored.
As Metro notes, the groundbreaking series was watched for 23,940,000 hours in just a single week, proving that the appetite for more Heartstopper is clearly very strong among fans.
