Earlier this month, The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman sent fan-fiction writers into a frenzy when he hinted that Daryl Dixon, one of the show’s most popular characters, might be gay. Comic Book Movie reports that Kirkman responded to the question via the fan letters column in The Walking Dead #130:
“All I can say is that it’s been discussed. We have very specific ideas about Daryl’s sexuality (or the seeming lack thereof), and if there’s ever a quiet period in the show where he’s not consistently distracted by crossbowing… we’ll tackle it in the show.”
In a recent interview, TV Line hit showrunner Scott Gimple with the same question, and while he didn’t offer a definitive answer, he did offer some more insight into the character of Daryl:
“We know all sorts of things about the characters that we haven’t revealed. [But] we’re not holding back information on Daryl’s sexuality as any sort of big reveal. The fact that there’s still a question as to what Daryl’s orientation is in Season 5 absolutely speaks to Daryl’s character; he is a very guarded, very closed-off individual in a lot of ways. We have been able to see him ever so slowly open up and show the other characters aspect by aspect as to what makes him tick.
That’s been a very satisfying journey for all of us on the creative side to portray. [And] he’s still on that journey. This is a character who is going to continue to grow closer to the other characters, [and]let his guard down, and let them see just who he is, in every way.”
Gimple went on to say that Daryl’s sexuality wouldn’t be addressed in the upcoming fifth season of the series, but confirmed that a gay male character would be introduced. When that will occur remains anyone’s guess, as Gimple declined to offer anything further.
The Walking Dead returns for a fifth season on October 12, exclusively on AMC.
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