The Walking Deadmay havedefinitely delivered a few fumbles in 2016, but that doesn't mean all hope is lost for the seasons ahead. Tom Payne, who's been rocking as Paul "Jesus" Rovia on the show's last two seasons, put purists mind at ease Monday by confirming that at least one yet-to-be-explored aspect of the source material will remain unchanged: Jesus is gay.
"I think that would be amazing," Payne told the Huffington Post during an AOL BUILD Series chat when asked if future Dead episodes might show that aspect of his character. "I know that [Robert] Kirkman has said about the comic books that, yeah, who cares? He's a badass and he happens to be gay."
Jesus is another example of the strength of Kirkman's writing, Payne added, because the sexual orientation question is treated matter-of-factly. "I think that's one of the strongest things about Robert and how he writes the comic books," Payne explained. Though the series hasn't directly addressed any of this just yet, fan speculation surrounding the relationship between Jesus and Sasha is most certainly in vain. "I see no reason why that would be different in the show," Payne said of his character.
In the original comic book series, Jesus' surname is Monroe instead of Rovia. Monroe is generally described as an "openly gay" Dead character. In the AMC adaptation, Payne's take on Jesus made his first appearance in the season 6 episode "The Next World." Will we see a more multidimensional (i.e. comics-honoring) interpretation of Jesus on future episodes? Payne certainly seems to think so. Let's hope he's right.
