For over five decades, LGBTQ fans have speculated that Velma Dinkley from the Scooby-Doo franchise was gay. Obviously, during the 1970s and ’80s, there was no way Hanna-Barbera was outing one of their main characters on a Saturday morning cartoon. But entering the modern era, many Scooby-Doo creators tried to bring Velma out of the closet, only to find themselves blocked in doing so.
Well, according to a report from Variety, Velma is finally officially coming out as a lesbian. This happens in the new animated movie Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo! We can all say a collective happy “Jinkies!” now. You can watch the clip in question right here:
The clip above has gone viral, confirming at last what everyone knew since 1969. In the clip, Velma gets love-struck upon seeing female costume designer Coco Diablo. (Which, we must say, is a fabulous name for a character). This is not the first time creators have tried to officially say Velma is a lesbian. James Gunn, who wrote the original Scooby-Doo live-action movies in the early 2000s, has publicly stated he wanted to make Velma a queer character. But the studio thwarted all attempts. Gunn said she was openly gay in his first script. Then, they toned it down to “ambiguously gay.” Finally, all references to her sexuality were dropped.
Similarly, Tony Cervone, who was a supervising producer on the Mystery Incorporated series, has confirmed that Velma was gay in a post on social media. But like with Gunn, all actual declarations of said queer status had to be offscreen. Finally, it seems someone realized it was 2022, and characters we all know to be queer can finally say it out loud. The usual people who are going to be mad about it will scream and yell, and move on to another outrage. In the meantime, the rest of us can celebrate our new (ok, maybe not so new) queer icon.
Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo! is available now to rent or purchase on digital and DVD.
