Sesame Street stars Bert and Ernie have found themselves at the centre of international discourse, with the internet hotly debating whether or not the notable puppets are a romantic item.
It all began when longtime Sesame Street writer Mark Saltzman told Queerty that the characters were written to reflect the relationship he shared with his boyfriend at the time, film editor Arnold Glassman.
There was no other way to portray them, Saltzman said.
“I remember one time a preschooler (in San Francisco) turned to her mum and asked ‘Are Bert and Ernie lovers?’ and that, coming from a preschooler, was fun,” he told Queerty.
“That got passed around, and everyone had their chuckle and went back to it."
He continued: “And I always felt that without a huge agenda, when I was writing Bert and Ernie, they were. I didn’t have any other way to contextualise them.”
However, Sesame Street refuted Saltzman's claims, releasing a statement in response, claiming that the characters were “best friends” and were “created to teach preschoolers that people can be good friends with those who are very different from themselves."
“Even though they are identified as male characters and possess many human traits and characteristics (as most Sesame Street Muppets do), they remain puppets, and do not have a sexual orientation," the statement read.
Naturally, social media users were quick to poke fun at the discussion.
"So Republicans are worried gay puppets Bert and Ernie are bad role models but totally cool with the treasonous puppet in the White House," tweeted Randi Mayem Singer, the screenwriter behind Mrs. Doubtfire.
"I don't really care if Bert and Ernie are gay (they are), but I'm definitely over straight people telling me queer identity doesn't matter," shared Buzzfeed writer Louis Peitzman.
"Are there really people who didn’t know Bert and Ernie were gay?" asked the Executive Producer of Ellen, Andy Lassner.
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