THE WALKING DEAD’s Daryl Dixon May Be Gay, And I Wish This Wasn’t News

In the letter column published in The Walking Dead #130 a fan inquired about Daryl’s sexuality, pondering if the character could be gay.  Robert Kirkman responded stating,

“All I can say is that it’s been discussed,” Kirkman wrote in the letters page. “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.”

Kirkman’s answer was tactful, and probably very honest.  Author’s often put together full character backgrounds with a great deal of information that the reader never sees.  It is a common technique used to keep a character honest and consistent.  In my fledgling writing endeavors I have used it, and would encourage anyone thinking of writing stories to do so as well.  This whole episode reminds me of J.K. Rowling commenting that when she was writing Harry Potter she envisioned Dumbledore as a gay character.  In both cases I just don’t care.  A person being gay doesn’t change who they are to me.  I look forward to a time when this question isn’t newsworthy because we have a diverse cast of characters  in a property that reflect the diversify that exists in the world.   I know we are not there yet, but it is coming, and the less people react viscerally to this the closer we are to that time.

I know some people are concerned AMC will refuse to allow Dixon to be gay on the TV show, but this is stupid.  Breaking Bad, Madmen and Walking Dead are all shows that push the envelope and any parent complaining that he/she is no longer comfortable letting their kid watch the show now would look incredibly stupid.

Gay people exist, this is the reality of the world, because of this they should also be characters in our stories.  If you’re a person who finds this shocking and surprising I’m willing to bet there is someone in your life who is gay that would also shock and surprise you.  If you’re a person is uncomfortable with The Walking Dead now, you should consider why graphic violence is less abrasive to you than the idea that a fictional character in the franchise is gay.

Daryl Dixon is an incredibly well developed and conflicted character.  If you Google his name right now the first match will be a question of his sexuality.  I find it worrisome we reduce the anyone, even a fictional character to nothing more than their sexuality.