After decades, Velma Dinkley is out of the closet! New ‘Scooby-Doo’ movie depicts her as lesbian

Finally a 53-year-old debate has been put to rest. No more lazy speculation. No more resorting to crazy ‘headcanons’. No more armchair analysts working themselves to a frenzy as they try to address the million-dollar question- ‘is she or isn’t she… you know a bit fruity?’

Velma Dinkley, the bespectacled and nerdy crime-solving heroine, is now ‘canonically’ a lesbian.

For decades, fans of the ‘Scooby-Doo’ franchise have been convinced that the shy yet brainy Dinkley (who is seldom seen without her glasses and orange turtleneck) bats for the ladies rather than the men.

‘Scooby Doo’ created by Hanna-Barbera Productions, first appeared as a Saturday morning cartoon in 1969. Over the years the cartoon show became a household name and made its mark in American pop culture, so it was frequently reinvented in TV shows, films and spinoffs. The show revolves around a group of teenage investigators consisting of Shaggy, Fred, Daphne, Velma and their ‘talkative’ Great Dane Scooby Doo.

Previously, the writers of the franchise have said that although although they picturised Dinkley as a lesbian, they couldn't make it official as the Warner Bros Studios did not comply. James Gunn - who was the screenplay writer for ‘Scooby Doo’, the 2002 live-action film - admitted to a fan in 2020 that although he had initially picturised Dinkley as an out and proud lesbian, the studio was having none of it. “Velma was explicitly gay in my initial script. But the studio kept watering it down, becoming ambiguous,” he explained through a Twitter post, which he has now deleted.


However the new Scooby Doo film ‘Trick or Treat Scooby Doo’ leaves no doubts about her sexual orientation. Dinkley is shown to be smitten (along with heart eyes and the works!) in the presence of a new character Coco Diablo. In a later scene, she initially denies her feelings before admitting, “I am crushing big time, Daphne. What do I do?What do I say?”


Fans of the franchise were obviously overjoyed at the revelation. One Twitter user wrote, “OMG LESBIAN VELMA FINALLY CANON CANON IN THE MOVIES LETS GOOOO!”


Another fan wrote, “Velma being gay is actually massive, we’re at a point in time when this major character, full of decades-old history and fans, gets to actually be a lesbian and that’s just another part of her canon now! Sometimes we need to celebrate these wins.”


Directed by Audie Harrison, ‘Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo’ was released on October 4 on multiple digital platforms. It will premiere on HBO Max (subscription video service) from October 14.