It's true: Disney's new series includes their first multi-cultural, bisexual lead character

Luz Noceda is Disney's newest character. To members of the LGBTQIA+ community, she's a victory for queer representation. She plays the lead character in the Disney Channel's recently-announced series The Owl House. Luz is both bisexual and, as a Dominican-American teenager, multi-cultural. Dana Terrace, the brain behind the series, was intentional about her character's identity. Though  "certain" members of senior Disney leadership were initially hesitant about including the character, she persevered. Her "stubbornness," she claimed in a tweet, finally "paid off" when Disney executives gave her the go-ahead. Terrace has since been highly praised for her active decision to represent the LGBTQIA+ community in a show for children.

In The Owl House, viewers will get to join 14-year-old bi and multi-cultural Luz on her journey to becoming a witch, even though she reportedly has no magical abilities, CNN reports. While she is not the production company's first LGBTQIA+ character (readers may recall the gay main character in a short film on Disney Plus), she is the first to be featured in a Disney Channel television series. According to series creator Terrace, there was originally a lot of pushback from senior leadership about the inclusion of a gay character. She stated in a tweet, "When we were greenlit, I was told by certain Disney leadership that I could NOT represent any form of bi or gay relationship on the channel."

Nonetheless, as someone who is bi herself, she understood the importance of diverse representation. Therefore, she fought the good fight--much to her joy. "I'm bi! I want to write a bi character, dammit!" Terrae explained. "Luckily my stubbornness paid off and now I am VERY supported by current Disney leadership." She also took a moment to thank her team and the "amazingness" of the crew that worked on The Owl House. She finally affirmed, "Representation matters! Always fight to make what YOU want to see! As The Owl House continues I can't wait to explore things that are important to me and my crew. Looking forward to the next chapter."

Since the show first aired, the series creator has been showered with praise for her "stubbornness." Many have thanked her for representing the LGTBQIA+ community, especially for younger children who may be struggling with gender and sexuality themselves. Others have lamented that they did not have shows like The Owl House when they were growing up. Among those leaving positive feedback for Terrace and her show is Alex Hirsch, the creator of Disney's now-iconic series Gravity Falls. In addition to appreciating his fellow show creator's work, he confirmed that Disney's executive leadership was in fact rather hesitant to include LGBTQIA+ characters and storylines. "Apparently, 'happiest place on earth' meant 'straightest,'" he wrote in a tweet to Terrace. "Thanks to Dana Terrace and team, there are explicitly queer animated main characters on Disney TV."

He added, "This time, Disney, you did good." Of course, this is the first time a member of the LGBTQIA+ community takes center stage; in the past, characters from the community were represented through minor or non-recurring roles. This includes Officer Spector, voiced by Lena Waithe, in this year's feature film Onward, as well as Andi Mack, which became the first show on Disney Channel to feature a character discover that they are gay.