Loki Director Kate Herron Addresses "Incest" Romance Question From Fans

The first season of Loki has come to an end and it featured the titular character (Tom Hiddleston) falling for a Variant version of himself named Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino). While the romance was certainly an unconventional one, many fans loved watching the journey unfold, especially as it helped Loki grow and showcased the theme of self-love. However, there are some folks out there who aren't a fan of the Loki and Sylvie ship, and have even gone as far as to call the romance "incest." Recently, director Kate Herron was asked to address this accusation and she explained why she doesn't see it that way.

"My interpretation of it is that they're both Lokis, but they aren't the same person," Herron shared with Polygon. "I don't see them as being like brother and sister. They have completely different backgrounds […] and I think that's really important to her character. They sort of have the same role in terms of the universe and destiny, but they won't make the same decisions."

Herron added that Loki falling for Sylvie was an exploration of "self-love," but in a way that showcases Loki's new understanding of his own motives and integrity. "[The show is] looking at the self and asking 'What makes us us?'" Herron explained. "I mean, look at all the Lokis across the show, they're all completely different. I think there's something beautiful about his romantic relationship with Sylvie, but they're not interchangeable."

Recently, Herron and head writer Michael Waldren also spoke with Marvel.com about the show's romantic arc.

"That was one of the cruxes of my pitch [for the series], that there was going to be a love story," Waldron explained. "We went back and forth for a little bit about, like do we really want to have this guy fall in love with another version of himself? Is that too crazy? But in a series that, to me, is ultimately about self-love, self-reflection, and forgiving yourself, it just felt right that that would be Loki's first real love story."

"The look that they share, that moment, [it started as] a blossoming friendship," Waldron explained of the "Nexus Event." "Then for the first time, they both feel that twinge of, 'Oh, could this be something more? What is this I'm feeling?' These are two beings of pure chaos that are the same person falling in love with one another. That's a straight-up and down branch, and exactly the sort of thing that would terrify the TVA."

"Who's a better match for Loki than himself?" Herron added. "The whole show is about identity. It's about him, and he is on a very different path, and he is on a different journey. He sees things in Sylvie that he is like, 'Oh, I've been there. I know what you feel.' But she's like, 'Well, I don't feel that way.' And I think that was the kind of fun thing about it. She is him, but she's not him. They've had such different life experiences. So just from an identity perspective, it was interesting to dig into that." She added, "It was just about giving it the space to breathe and digging into it in a way that felt earned."

How do you feel Loki and Sylvie's romance? Do you ship it or do agree with those calling it a form of incest? Tell us your thoughts in the comments!

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