9 Fictional Cats That Are Fabulous Gay Icons

We all know the world actually belongs to cats.

And while they may have a long and storied association with lesbians, some of our favorite fictional felines have actually been relatable to all members of the LGBTQ+ community. From maniacal villains with aspirations of world domination to courageous heroes that don’t let their tiny size stop them, we’re here to celebrate these iconic kitties.

Salem Saberhagen ('Sabrina, the Teenage Witch')

Sure, the new Salem on The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is fine, but he could never hold a candle to our dear talking megalomaniac from 1996's Sabrina, the Teenage Witch. That Salem was a wise-cracking witch condemned to spend a century as a housecat for his plot to take over the world. He’s a complete troublemaker with a heart of…well, maybe there’s some gold flakes covering its twisted metal core, and his quips were constantly a gay mood. We learned to love the little guy as much as the Spellmans did…eventually.

Goose ('Captain Marvel')

Carol Danvers is queer in the MCU and you will literally never convince us otherwise. And even though her little pal Goose is actually a deadly Flerken who just happens to look like a cat, she still acts like a fair-weathered feline, desperate for attention one second and lashing out with her claws to partially blind Nick Fury the next. She’s almost as much of a gay icon as Captain Marvel herself.

Scar ('The Lion King')

Big cats are cats too, and this list wouldn’t be complete without acknowledging queer-codedLion King villain Scar. From his striking features to his effeminate presentation, Scar was to gay boys what Mufasa was to straight girls—an uncomfortable childhood crush on a cartoon lion. Look, it is what it is.

Wendy Beauchamp ('Witches of East End')

Witches of East End may not have lasted very long, but Wendy Beauchamp lives on fur-ever in our hearts. Gifted with nine lives and the ability to turn into a cat (black, obv), our favorite aunty witch captured all the qualities the gays have long admired—confidence, sexiness (as a human, you dorks), and the ability to easily change form to hide from the guy you’re hooking up with—even in the midst of a show far too jarringly heterosexual despite being about witches.

Meowth (Pokémon)

While he’s not exactly a cat per se, Meowth is as close as you can come to a being a cat in the world of Pokémon. And if Team Rocket is a queer disaster of a duo, then Meowth is totally their gay mascot. He’s also the brains of their operation, becoming yet another iconic queer cat bent on taking over the world.

All the Cats From 'Cats'

We don’t have to talk about Cats. No one wants to talk about Cats (sorry, Taylor). But there really isn’t much in this world gayer than Cats.

Miss Kitty Fantastico ('Buffy the Vampire Slayer')

We would be remiss if we failed to mention Miss Kitty Fantastico, the sweet kitten of one of the most iconic couples in queer TV history, Willow and Tara. Unfortunately, Miss Kitty Fantastico wasn’t on our screens for very long, and we eventually got a brief mention of an unfortunate incident between her and Dawn and a crossbow. But an untimely offscreen death seems all too appropriate for a lesbian pet in the early ‘00s.

Thackery Binx ('Hocus Pocus')

Hocus Pocus’s Thackery Binx is another human cursed to live as a creature, but no queer can resist the intersection of Halloween and cats. Beloved by children of all genders and orientations, Binx taught us how to be brave and loyal, while also driving home the lesson that sometimes no matter how cute and heroic you are, it’s the heterosexuals who get a happy ending while you end up trick or treating with your little sister for all of eternity.

Josie and the Pussycats

There’s literally no way to pretend the iconic Riverdale band is made up of actual cats, but Josie and the Pussycats have always brought camp to a whole new level. From the ears and leopard print leotards to everything about the vastly underrated 2001 live action film, Josie and the Pussycats are the actual definition of gay icons and we love them. Even if they are humans.