NBC's "Constantine" isn't hitting small screens until October, but already the show has fans agitated. The drama, based on the DC comics franchises "Hellblazer" and "Constantine," centers on the adventures of con man and supernatural detective John Constantine. Some fans are concerned about the accuracy of the character, not because of the costume or the powers, but because of the title character's sexuality.
In the "Hellblazer" comic books, John Constantine is shown as having both male and female lovers, though his sexuality is never explicitly labeled. NBC's version, however, has only planned female love interests for the character. Executive producer Daniel Cerone told Entertainment Weekly at the Television Critics Association’s press tour on Sunday that the character's sexuality was not integral to the character, stating, "In those comic books, John Constantine aged in real time. Within this tome of three decades [of comics] there might have been one or two issues where he’s seen getting out of bed with a man. So [maybe] 20 years from now? But there are no immediate plans.”
While it is true that the majority of Constantine's conquests have been female, many fans feel that this is straight-washing, or changing a LGBTQ character into a straight one. Voicing their concerns on social media over the past few days, comic fans have argued that bisexual men are an underrepresented group in the media and changing the sexuality of a queer character is erasure. Fans have flooded Tumblr and Twitter with the hashtag #BiBlazer, calling for people to contact NBC on their social media pages and request that Constantine be written as bisexual.
The character's sexuality hasn't been a big plot point in his latest solo series, "Constantine." But there are at least two instances from Constantine's decades-long history that seem hard to ignore. The first is in "Hellblazer" issue #51, in which Constantine thinks to himself (in this panel), "Girlfriends, the odd boyfriend... they all have a nasty habit of walking out on me." The other is a sexual relationship between Constantine and wizard S.W. Manor that occurs during the "Hellblazer: Highwater" arc (though Constantine was conning the wizard at the time). The 2005 film "Constantine," starring Keanu Reeves, does not explicitly state the character's sexuality.
With a character who appears in multiple comics over several decades, it's hard to pin down consistent character traits and details. But do the few notable examples make the character bisexual? Is his sexuality fluid or is he perhaps even pansexual? Fans may differ on what it means in terms of his characterization, but NBC has seemingly already decided their interpretation.
Before You Go
In a 2011 Esquire interview, Megan Fox confirmed her bisexuality, stating, "I think people are born bisexual and then make subconscious choices based on the pressures of society. I have no question in my mind about being bisexual. But I'm also a hypocrite: I would never date a girl who was bisexual, because that means they also sleep with men, and men are so dirty that I'd never want to sleep with a girl who had slept with a man."
The Green Day front man opened up about his sexuality in a 1995 interview with The Advocate: "I think I've always been bisexual. I mean, it's something that I've always been interested in. I think everybody kind of fantasizes about the same sex. I think people are born bisexual, and it's just that our parents and society kind of veer us off into this feeling of 'Oh, I can't.' They say it's taboo. It's ingrained in our heads that it's bad, when it's not bad at all. It's a very beautiful thing."
Comedian Margaret Cho has long been open about her sexuality. In August 2013, Cho discussed the semantics surrounding her open marriage to artist Al Ridenour, saying that she's "technically not able to stay with one person sexually because I’m bisexual,” and joking that she just “can’t stop up that hole.” She also identifies as queer, and opened up about her sexuality in an interview with HuffPost Gay Voices Editor-At-Large Michelangelo Signorile.
Twice-married record executive and music mogul Clive Davis came out as bisexual in his 2013 memoir, The Soundtrack Of My Life. Davis opened up about two long-term relationships he had with men after his divorce from his second wife.
Actress Bai Ling is openly bisexual -- and the identity category has often provided some humorous mix-ups involving her first name. According to GLAAD, she discussed it in-depth in a 2009 interview with Entertainment Weekly: "[A]t first when I was in the United States I didn't always have an interpreter in interviews and I didn't speak English so well. There was some confusion. My name is pronounced 'bi,' so when I was asked, 'Are you bi?' I said, 'Yes, I am Bai.' Do you like men? 'Of course!' Do you like women? 'Why yes!' And later I found out what that means and I said, 'Sure, I am bi!' But I think the interpreters and the reporters thought that I didn't know what I was saying because I was so open about it. They were uncomfortable about it. Such a thing is not important for me."
The "Portlandia" star and former guitarist and vocalist for Sleater-Kinney is often assumed to identify as gay. However, she told "Willamette Week" in 2012 that, "It’s weird, because no one’s actually ever asked me. People just always assume, like, you’re this or that. It’s like, ‘OK. I’m bisexual.’”
The star of "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" revealed that she's bisexual in an "Inside Edition" interview in April 2015. Her daughter "Pumpkin" Lauryn Thompson also came out as bi at the same time.
