Heartstopper’s Joe Locke wants to play first gay Disney prince: ‘That would be a dream’
Heartstopper star Joe Locke dreams of playing the first gay Disney prince following the success of the coming-of-age Netflix series.The 18-year-old actor rose to worldwide fame, almost overnight, after Heartstopper landed on the streaming service two weeks ago.Joe plays Charlie Spring, a year 10 student at an all-boys grammar school who develops a crush on rugby lad Nick Nelson (Kit Connor), whom he sits next to during form.However, the crush quickly develops into something much more, with year 11 Nick also falling for Charlie while grappling with his own sexuality.The two boys embark on a secret romance, as Nick comes to terms with his own identity and battles confusion, and Charlie faces bullying from Nick’s friends.Heartstopper has been widely praised by viewers for its authentic LGBTQ+ storytelling, with countless fans feeling inspired to come out to their own families as a result.Older queer viewers have also praised Heartstopper for offering positive representation for LGBTQ+ youth, which they didn’t have growing up.The show rocketed up the Netflix charts following its release, and now it seems the sky is truly the limit for the cast, who are amassing millions of social media followers.Setting his sights high and keen to be a beacon of hope for other LGBTQ+ people, Joe (who is, amazingly, studying for his A-levels amid the Heartstopper chaos) wants to star in a Disney project, telling the Independent: ‘I would love to play the first gay Disney prince.’‘That would be a dream,’ he added.??? @Disney https://t.co/ijFLoXur68He also hopes Heartstopper will be renewed for a second season (we’re waiting for the announcement too) and wants to pursue more projects that ‘mean something.’The actor – who scored his Heartstopper.
