I can obviously only speak for myself, but to me, the dynamic between Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story feels anything but romantic. Especially now that we've seen the ending of Cassian's love story with Bix in Andor. They're just two war-torn souls who spend the final moments of their lives hugging on a beach. What's romantic about that?
The more you dive into Jyn's backstory, though, the more you realize that she may have had something resembling romantic feelings for Cassian -- though she wouldn't have dared to act on them even if she did. In the Rogue One tie-in novel Rebel Rising by Beth Revis, Jyn does have another male romantic interest -- but, without spoilers, that ends traumatically for both of them. Jyn isn't easily going to open herself up to another romantic interest after that.
That's not all the book implies about Jyn's interests of the romantic variety, however. She also meets another girl, and the vibes are there -- think the Ahsoka novel, except Jyn might actually be interested. Curious, at the very least. It doesn't go anywhere, and the implications of the relationship are left to readers to decide. Hello, I'm a reader. I decided that this is the unofficial confirmation of Jyn's bisexuality.
And it's such an innocent yet meaningful idea to add to a young adult Star Wars book. Revis leaves it open to interpretation, never confirming anything one way or the other by design. It's not hurting anyone who disagrees with it, and for those who see themselves in that potential aspect of Jyn's character, it's a small win. A proud moment, if you will.
I was first introduced to the Jyn Erso Is Bi headcanon by a good friend on an episode of my podcast -- the first episode I ever recorded after coming out to her and Twitter, which we also address in the episode. It's not that Jyn has to be bisexual to matter. It's that her identity makes people like us feel seen and appreciated, whether it's "canon" or not.
Jyn changed the course of the conflict between the Rebel Alliance and the Empire forever. She changed the galaxy. She's an admirable character in many ways, and an inspiration for plenty of advocates fighting for justice and pushing back against oppression in the real world. Imagine being all that, and also being bi. That's almost too much power for one woman. Almost.
It's no secret that I'm a fan of Star Wars books, but one big reason is that these stories and their authors have much more freedom to reflect the diversity of our world in the fictional universe of a galaxy far, far away. The High Republic alone has so many lesbians that even I can't name them all off the top of my head. At a time when diversity is a dangerous word, for these books to still be able to celebrate it -- and do it well -- is incredibly special and important. It matters to me. It matters to all of us.
Whether it's your personal headcanon or not, bi Jyn Erso will always be my hero.