Dead End: Paranormal Park Creator On Why Courtney's Pronouns Changed
Creator Hamish Steele shares why Courtney's pronouns have changed from the original comic in the Dead End: Paranormal Park animated series. Based on Steele’s DeadEndia comic, this cartoon adaptation was recently released on Netflix and has gained new traction on social media. Dead End tells the story of two teenagers, Barney Guttman (Spider-Man: Far From Home’s Zach Barack) and Norma Khan (Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Kody Kavitha), as they undertake their new jobs at a haunted theme park. As they work to uncover the secrets of the park, the pair are joined by the demonic Courtney, voiced by Hannah Montana's Emily Osment, and Barney’s partially possessed dog Pugsley (Alex Brightman, known for Beetlejuice on Broadway).
The Netflix animation does make some notable changes from Steele’s original graphic novel. In the comic, Norma and Barney befriend each other while working as janitors at Phoenix Park, whereas the Netflix series has them as security guards (who aren’t very good at their jobs). Other changes saw the 912-year-old demon Courtney shift from using they/them to she/her pronouns for the show.
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Now, Steele reveals on his Twitter what decisions went into making this change to Dead End: Paranormal Park. Netflix is aware of the non-human non-binary trope, and producers encouraged gender-blind casting for Courtney, with a plan for Courtney to use the same pronouns as the actor cast. While Steele assured fans that Osment was the best fit for the role, he is also understanding that the change may have been disappointing to those hoping to see themselves represented. Regardless of the pronoun switch, many fans still feel Courtney to be
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