What does Sophia Di Martinos Loki role mean for the MCU?
This post includes spoilers for Loki episode 2. Featured Video Hide  Thanks to leaked photos from the Loki film set, many fans already guessed that English actress Sophia Di Martino would play a female version of Loki. Episode 2 confirmed those rumors, setting the scene for an intriguing conflict. Advertisement Hide  As a shapeshifter, Loki can theoretically take on any appearance. However, the TVA also revealed that different timelines include different Loki variants. The show follows Tom Hiddlestons Loki (lets call him Loki Prime) as he helps the TVA hunt down a dangerous (and unseen) Loki variant, ending episode 2 with a big confrontation. After swapping between a few temporary human bodies, this mysterious new Loki reveals herself in the form of a blonde woman (Sophia Di Martino). Comics fans are already familiar with this kind of alternate-universe hijinks. For example, one strand of the Marvel Multiverse includes a world where Tony Stark is a woman. The situation with Loki may be little more complicated, however. While Di Martino gets an exciting introduction, some fans may see her role a cop-out, using alternate timelines to avoid discussing Loki Primes gender fluidity on-screen. Basically, it seems like Loki can be a woman but only if its a different Loki from the one in the main MCU timeline. Loki is genderfluid in Marvel comics canon, an idea that began with 2008s Lady Loki storyline, when Loki was depicted as a woman for about a year. After this, comics like Loki: Agent of Asgard began to offer a more nuanced portrayal of Lokis gender identity and shapeshifting powers. One comic sees Odin describe his three children as his son (Thor), his daughter (Angela), and my child who is both, referring to Loki. Advertisement Hide  For all intents and purposes, the MCU depicts Loki as a cisgender man. But this changed when Marvel shared an image of Lokis case file in the new Disney+ show, labeling the characters sex as fluid. Director Kate Herron said Lokis genderfluidity would be acknowledged in the show, but its unclear what that actually means. After all, Disney is very conservative when it comes to LGBTQ+ representation. That case file may be as far as it goes, but were only two episodes into a six-episode season, so thats an open-ended question for now. Sophia Di Martinos Loki offers a compelling foil for Loki Prime, and a tempting cliffhanger leading into episode 3. Even if youre the kind of fan who already guessed Di Martinos role, her arrival makes an exciting impact. But if Disney intentionally introduced Lady Loki as an alternate-universe character instead of depicting Loki Prime as genderfluid, then thats a pretty disappointing decision. However, Di Martinos character may not be who she seems.