Rugrats is being reimagined entirely in its Paramount+ reboot that will turn the 1991 smash series into CG-animation and introduce more diverse families into the cast. Its mainstay Betty DeVille is also entering the show’s revival with a new (but totally believable) twist. Voiced by queer actor Natalie Morales, Betty will now be the openly gay mother of the rowdy twins Phil and Lil, even though we fans have always secretly heralded her as a queer icon.
Betty is openly gay in the rugrats reboot !!!! FINALLY CONFIRMATION ON WHAT WE ALWAY Knew! People can cry about it but rugrats has always been about equality and diversity
— Kiley Lovato (@khuBaibStation) May 28, 2021
According to Newsweek, last year Melanie Chartoff, who voices Didi Pickles, revealed that “one of the characters is a lesbian now” in an interview with Back To Best podcast. In a statement to AV Club , Morales confirmed the news saying, “anyone who watched the original show may have had an inkling Betty was a member of the alphabet mafia.” Fans of the cartoon took to Twitter to rejoice and also make it known that avid watchers are by no means alarmed by the recent revelation. One user tweeted, “I was today years old when I learned that Betty from Rugrats wasn’t always gay.” Another tweeted, “Betty is openly gay in the Rugrats reboot!!!! Finally confirmation on what we always knew. People can cry about it but Rugrats has always been about equality and diversity.”
Morales explained that Betty’s character is far more than a surface character for diversity purposes, but a compelling and intentional representation of queer women fulfilled with a balanced life of career, motherhood, and friendship. “Betty is a single mom with her own business who has twins and still has time to hang out with her friends and her community, and I think it’s just so great because examples of living your life happily and healthily as an out queer person are just such a beacon for young queer people who may not have examples of that,” she said. “And yeah, Betty is a fictional cartoon, but even cartoons were hugely influential for me as a kid and if I’d been watching Rugrats and seen Betty casually talking about her ex-girlfriend, I think at least a part of me would have felt like things might be okay in the future.”
