Manhunt author Gretchen Felker-Martin says she has no regrets following the cancellation of Red Hood. The title, written by Felker-Martin and featuring art by Jeff Spokes, was abruptly cancelled yesterday after DC deemed some of the writer’s Bluesky posts about the murder of right-wing provocateur Charlie Kirk a violation of the company’s social media policy.
Felker-Martin told The Comics Journal that she feels bad the rest of the comic’s creative team was impacted by the cancellation, but that “I had no regrets for what I said about [Kirk].” She said she had privately reached out to other members of the creative team amid the controversy.
Kirk died on Wednesday after being shot on stage at an event in Utah. Elected officials have united in their condemnation of political violence, but on social media, many users say they won’t mourn his loss, given Kirk’s history of bigoted and violent rhetoric.
Felker-Martin, who is transgender, cited Kirk’s history of inciting violence against the queer community when speaking with TCJ.
“[Kirk’s murder] just didn’t strike me as an especially hot flashpoint,” she said. “This is such a loathsome person. Everyone on the entire internet is talking about how pleasant it is that he got his. … I saw that he had died in the middle of spreading more of the bigotry that he spent his every waking moment promulgating, and in a way that he had advocated for others to die, and felt nothing but contempt for his life. I mean, this is a man who I’ve watched for years go on television and on enormous stages and convention halls and say that me and everyone like me should be stoned to death.”
In 2024, Kirk confronted children’s entertainer Ms. Rachel, who had cited the New Testament instruction to “love thy neighbor” in respect to LGBTQIA+ people. He replied on X by misquoting a passage in Leviticus — “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination” — as ending with “…shall be stoned to death.” This same X exchange led Stephen King to criticize Kirk this week, although he later deleted the tweet and apologized.
Felker-Martin has a history of making incendiary remarks on social media, including comments about the September 11 terrorist attacks and the Israel-Palestine conflict which have erupted into their own mini-controversies. She told TCJ that she had warned DC that hiring her would come with baggage.
“As soon as you hire me, you’re going to get between five and a hundred of the craziest people you’ve ever met in your life, screaming for my head and yours,” Felker-Martin said she told editor Arianna Turturro when she was recruited for Red Hood.
Indeed, the comic was targeted by Comicsgate and other right-wing commentators basically as soon as it was announced. DC weathered that controversy, but Felker-Martin says three weeks ago, she received a call from Turturro and Batman Group Editor Rob Levin after Jewish news outlet Algemeiner Journal reported critically on some of Felker-Martin’s comments about the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel.
Apparently during that conversation, Felker-Martin was asked to be mindful of her social media posts — something she says had never come up during her hiring. In the TCJ article, they report that both DC and other freelancers say a basic social media policy is part of the company’s standard work-for-hire agreement.
Speaking with TCJ, Felker-Martin acknowledged that she knew her posts about Charlie Kirk would be problematic for the publisher “as soon as I had said it.” Still, she says she would not have done anything differently another chance.
Felker-Martin, whose primary job is writing prose, said it’s unlikely DC would ask her to write more comics, and that if she was offered a job there, she wouldn’t take it. She told TCJ that she felt “disposable” to DC as a transgender creator, and that DC wanted to embrace her controversial nature only until it became inconvenient for the company.
Felker-Martin joins MSNBC’s Matthew Dowd, who was fired after making comments critical of Kirk on the air. Dowd later apologized.
Critics and supporters of Felker-Martin have unsurprisingly been vocal on social media, with Roxane Gay admonishing DC for the firing, saying, “Every writer here should be decrying this because we have to stand up for each other! This is ridiculous.” Right-wing comics artist Ethan Van Sciver — whose own incendiary social media posts reportedly made him persona non grata at DC — celebrated, tweeting “we got one” after the news.
DC offered retailers a full refund for all purchased copies Red Hood #1, which hit the stands on Wednesday, including those they had already sold. Lunar Distribution reportedly asked retailers to pull the first issue from their shelves, although online chatter suggests most copies of the title have made their way into the hands of collectors and scalpers. Of the dozens of copies on eBay, the cheapest “Buy it Now” copies will run you between $20 and $30.
