Heartstopper star Joe Locke ‘screamed’ after being cast in Marvel spinoff series

By Mike Bedigan, PA Los Angeles Correspondent

Joe Locke says he “screamed” after finding out he had been cast in a new Marvel spin-off series.

The Heartstopper star, 19, will reportedly appear alongside Kathryn Hahn in Agatha: Coven Of Chaos.

The series, itself a spinoff of WandaVision starring Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany, will see Hahn reprise her role of powerful witch Agatha Harkness.

The exact details of Locke’s role, and further information about the series, are yet to be confirmed.

But sharing reports of his casting on Instagram, the young actor wrote: “When I found out I got an email which said ‘welcome to the marvel universe’ and I screamed.”

Locke rose to fame recently for his portrayal of Charlie Spring in the Netflix coming-of age series, Heartstopper.

He starred alongside Kit Connor, who plays Nick Nelson, and the series sees the two boys fall in love after meeting at school.

The LGBT series, based on the popular graphic novels by Alice Oseman, has been renewed for seasons two and three after becoming a hit this year.

Reports of Locke’s casting in Agatha: Coven Of Chaos come as Heartstopper received nine nominations at the Children’s and Family Emmy awards.

Both he and Connor were nominated for lead performance and the series was nominated for young teen program.

It also comes after Connor announced he is bisexual, but suggested he was “forced” to come out publicly.

His decision to come out was met with a wave of support from some of his more than one million followers, including from Locke, who wrote: “You owe nothing to anyone. I’m so proud of you my friend.”