Joe Locke is set to debut as a gay character in Agatha All Along but fears getting typecast in similar roles and wants to prove his versatility to fans.

The up-and-coming star Joe Locke is all set to return to the screens and win fans’ hearts once again after his critics’ favorite performance in Netflix’s queer drama series, Heartstopper (2022). This time, despite it being only his second professional role on the screens, he will be making his debut in the Marvel superhero verse through his gay character Teen in Agatha All Along.

But while he is happy to work on this role in the forthcoming series, which has allowed such intense dimensionality to his character, Locke also has second thoughts about playing gay characters. If anything, he feels like he might turn into a one-trick pony and get typecast in typical queer roles if he continues to trek down this path – something he really doesn’t want to happen.

Joe Locke Doesn’t Want to Get Typecast in Similar Gay Roles

Joe Locke started his professional acting career with 2022’s Heartstopper, playing the queer character Charlie Spring in the series. His performance was flawless, and he soon became a major hit in the industry. But this fame came with a price to pay as he feels his real identity has been getting entwined with Charlie’s – so much so that he fears getting typecast in similar roles.

Locke in Heartstopper. | Credits: Netflix.

During a recent confession session with Variety, the 20-year-old rising star talked about the same and getting cast in queer roles, saying:

I find all of it quite overwhelming. In a good way, but still overwhelming. Sometimes I feel very accepting of it, and some days I want to push it away because I’m afraid of — I don’t know — the responsibility of it, almost.

While it may seem like a lot being expected from someone who is pretty much just starting out, Locke even revealed how he has been getting a lot of casting calls for LGBTQ characters — something he clearly isn’t okay with. He went on to say:

There are days that I never want to play a gay character again. Most of the casting I get sent are for gay characters.

Of course, no one wants their talent and the multi-dimensionality they can bring to their assigned characters to get sidelined by viewers just because they got one specific role right to the core. That said, Locke also admits how he’s looking forward to playing non-gay roles to prove to the industry that he’s not “a one-trick pony who was just the guy from ‘Heartstopper.’”

But while that’s that, the young heartthrob also feels incredibly grateful for being cast in Agatha All Along, even though this upcoming role also sees him playing a gay superhero — the second one in this Marvel-verse series, at that.

At the Same Time, Joe Locke is Happy About His Gay Role in Marvel

Locke alongside Kathryn Hahn in Agatha All Along. | Credits: Disney+

During the same interview, Locke went on to talk about how his queer role in Kathryn Hahn‘s upcoming solo Marvel series stands out from the rest and is one that he is actually happy to play. This is because of the depth and innumerable defining features that his character ‘Teen’ holds in the storyline besides being a gay superhero. As Locke explained:

The show never shies away from his queerness, but it’s not a defining feature of his character. It’s just one layer of him as a person.

Obviously, a character with such dimensionality was something Locke had been craving to play as it not only delves him into the superhero verse but also allows him to put all his other talents on display while engulfing the other layers of his character. That said, it seems this upcoming series will be jam-packed with some seriously epic drama fans have been yearning for all along!

Agatha All Along is scheduled to premiere with its first 2 episodes on Disney+ on September 18, 2024.