16 Fictional Queer Redheads You Can’t Handle

I was recently doing my quarterly Carol viewing while I was torturing myself around the same time by rewatching Skins, and when Carol asked Abby, “Really? You think you got what it takes to handle a redhead?” my mind jumped to Emily Fitch, and then rapid-flipped through an entire gay Pokédex of fictional queer redheads. I said out loud, “Wow, redheads really are uncontrollable!” and decided to make a list to prove it. I have included shades of red in this list, like pink and purple, because duh, those colors are gay as heck. Also this list is not comprehensive. There are more. Oh ho boi, are there more! Just out there, in the wild, with their hair on fire, being completely and thoroughly unplayable.  And so, here are 16 fictional queer redheads you can’t handle.

Carol asking Abby, "Really? You think you got what it takes to handle a redhead?"


Willow Rosenberg, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Willow Rosenberg, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

The original fictional queer redhead, Willow Rosenberg. Best friend, witch, vampire, girlfriend who survived the onset of the Bury Your Gays trope and lived to tell about it, hardly even blowing up the entire world one time over it.

Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn

Queer redhead Poison Ivy from Harley Quinn

Poison Ivy would sooner kill a man than look at him, especially if she suspects he’s messing with her friends. She’s a Suicide Squad member, a whiz with vegetation, and a rogue psychiatrist. Only sultry jewel thieves in leather cat costumes cause her to lose her composure.

Quinn Fabray, Glee

quinn fabray with pink hair in glee

Pink hair don’t care Quinn Fabray nearly did the impossible: she nearly turned Rachel Berry gay. She certainly made an entire generation of late-aughts queers even queerer. She also walked only in slow-motion while smoking and wearing full leather and sunglasses indoors. What chaos!

Nicole Haught, Wynonna Earp

queer redhead Nicole Haught from Wynonna Earp

Don’t let that adorable smile and warm face fool you — Puragtory’s resident sheriff/angel shield is more than capable of using her charm, wit, ninja skills, tenacity, and family connections to destroy you.

Fish Mooney, Gotham

Fish Mooney, Gotham

An empire builder who isn’t scared to go up against noted crime bosses and supervillains, Fish Mooney is also tenacious enough to be resurrected from the dead after being buried under the literal Arkham Asylum in Gotham City.

Violet, Her Story

queer redhead violet from her story

I have been in the presence of Jen Richards, who plays Violet on Her Story, on multiple occasions, and I will tell you right now that I do not get starstruck butterflies, but this woman leaves me tongue-tied every time! Imagine if she was looking at you like she’s looking at Laura Zak here, like she wants to gobble her up! You would absolutely not be able to deal with it.

Ryan Wilder, Batwoman

ryan wilder as batwoman

She’s the goddamn Batwoman — what else do you need to know?

Maze, Lucifer

maze from lucifer

Just the former right hand woman of the literal devil who enjoys some casual bounty hunting on the side.

Toni Topaz, Riverdale

Toni Topaz, Riverdale

Following in the teenage rebel “pink hair, don’t care” footsteps of Quinn Fabray, Toni Topaz won’t be thwarted by serial killers, psychotic nuns, homophobes, or rival gangs.

Rose, Jane the Virgin

queer redhead rose from jane the virgin

Attorney turned crime lord turned face-swapper — how do you say no to a woman who owns her own submarine?? Sure she’s a “textbook sociopath,” but she’s also a believer in being part of the greatest love story ever told.

Rosa Diaz, Brooklyn Nine-Nine

rosa diaz from brooklyn nine nine

Loyal, determined, intuitive, relentless, fierce! She owns a motorcycle! And enough leather jackets to be the poster child for television badasses! She’s also heart-meltingly sweet when it comes down to it, and that makes her even harder to handle!

Alex Danvers, Supergirl

queer redhead alex danvers from supergirl

A superhero without superpowers who literally never, ever, ever gives up. Ever. Literally ever. You can’t walk this queer redhead back, wear her down, or outsmart her. She can also drink you under the table.

Amanita, Sense8

Amanita, Sense8

Amanita is the most resourceful person on this list, and accomplishes more heroic feats than basically everyone else, even though she doesn’t have superpowers or the resources of entire governments at her fingertips. She’s that affable and clever (and in love).

Tess Van De Berg, The L Word: Generation Q

queer redhead tess from the l word: generation q

Tess is like the one lesbian in the entire state of California not to be broken by Shane’s whole deal. When Shane did to Dawn Denbo what she did to Tess, Dawn Denbo lost her entire mind and started like a mob. Not Tess. She just went to work.

Emily Fitch, Skins

queer redhead emily fitch from skins

Some queer redheads on this list you can’t handle because they’re too messy. Some you can’t handle because they’ve got, you know, psychotic impulses or dark magic or bloodlust. But Emily Fitch you can’t handle because she loves with such sincere and earnest wholeness it’ll melt you from the inside out like a sweet little blow torch.

Queen Sophie-Anne, True Blood

queen sophie anne from true blood

Hell hath no fury like a broke Vampire Queen.

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Heather Hogan

Heather Hogan is an Autostraddle senior editor who lives in New York City with her wife, Stacy, and their cackle of rescued pets. She's a member of the Television Critics Association, GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics, and a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer critic. You can also find her on Twitter and Instagram.

Heather has written 1719 articles for us.

17 Comments

  1. Cassandra Cillian, The Librarians

    Cassandra may be a science nerd who does mathematics and uses that to do magic (mathemagics), but it’s her extreme earnestness that has Italian princesses, Spanish vampires, and even frost giants falling in love with her.

  2. I have been looking for this list. As a queer redhead I always want to find queer redheaded characters to dress up for for Halloween and I’ve been having trouble finding a list. Thank God for Heather. Now I’ll always have this to look at.

  3. OK so I read “Just the former right hand woman of the literal devil who enjoys some casual bounty hunting on the side” as booty hunting and tbh my version might be better. ;-)

    Also, I know that the character of Dana Scully was not canonically queer but Gillian Anderson is queer so I think that kinda counts….

  4. … let’s also not forget about Ms “whyfore have I been summoned” “I’m in the mood for chaos” “do you think these Louboutins are too flashy for kombucha brewing” Teen Lesbian Gothic Heroine CHERYL BLOSSOM

  5. Just a few things:

    1.) I absolutely adore redheads and believe they are unique and magical beings
    2.) Tess from The L Word GQ straight up makes me swoon, and I want to smack Shane every time she unleashed her angst at her for no apparent reason.
    3.) Emily Fitch = swoon city.
    4.) What’re everyone’s thoughts on red-headed Lara from original The L Word? My take is that I was definitely in love with her but also did not want her around…? It deeply confused me.

    • Lara is confusing, I agree! She’s gorgeous, and she has this kind of sexy breathiness that can be alluring and we all want someone to cook us gourmet meals… but she’s also underdeveloped as a character, and I feel like in the end her personality was little more than giant wounded eyes and not being able to keep her pants on ever. I wish they’d written her with more nuance and depth.

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