Taika Waititi Insists that Our Flag Means Death is a ‘Romantic Comedy’

HBO’s Our Flag Means Death just ended its first season last week, and a lot of fans were surprised at how pro-LGBTQ+ the series turned out to be. With Taika Waititi playing one of the show’s biggest characters, Blackbeard, he goes online to celebrate how the show really was a romantic comedy the whole time.

Here’s Waititi’s post on IG:

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Taika Waititi (@taikawaititi)

“I’m very proud of this romantic comedy we made. Very proud. It’s not “bromantic”, it’s ROMANTIC. If you hate this show, don’t worry, I still love you. And I hope you begin to understand the many layers that love can encompass. Love is love baby.”

Though the series started out kind of plain, the queer message slowly became more and more apparent, culminating in the final episodes where the relationship of Blackbeard and Stede Bonnet (Rhys Darby) is given a really close look.

Besides the fantastic chemistry between Darby and Waititi, the show is also filled with other queer characters from Bonnet’s chronicler Lucius to Vico Ortiz’s non-binary character Jim/Bonifacia. Blackbeard’s first mate Izzy Hands was framed as having some kind of infatuation for his captain.

A second season has yet to be announced, but show creator David Jenkins has told Polygon that a second season ‘looks good.’ Fan reaction to the show has been very positive, and the finale probably had the most people buzzing about the series online.

For now, you can catch the full first season of Our Flag Means Death now streaming on HBO Max.