Duncan Locke

“	You've already caused so much destruction. Where does this all end for you?	„
	~ Duncan harshly reprimanding Dodge.

Duncan Locke is a major character in Netflix Locke & Key series. He is the brother of late Rendell Locke, and the uncle of Tyler, Kinsey, and Bode Locke. He minimizes his time at Keyhouse Manor by using the location of his job and his boyfriend, Bryan, both of which are in Boston. There, Duncan taught women struggling with substance abuse to paint. He is portrayed by Aaron Ashmore.

Biography[]

Past[]

When Duncan was a small boy, he and his brother Rendell discovered the magic keys around their ancestral estate, Keyhouse Manor. They would use them frequently, and Chamberlain Locke would eventually tell the currently unborn Bode Locke that Duncan and Rendell would often enter the Astral Plane to visit him, and in one of his memories, Bode's currently unborn siblings Tyler and Kinsey would watch as Rendell and Duncan use the Identity Key.

Presumably, their use of the keys dwindled, and Rendell began sharing them with his friends, who become known as the Keepers of the Keys. When a spectral shadow was unleashed from the other side of the Black Door, a boy named Lucas Caravaggio, Duncan witnessed his death and exorcism at Rendell's hands. Leaving Duncan out of the fiasco for which he had been uninvolved in and yet an ideal witness, the Keepers ultimately chose to remove Duncan's memories of the disastrous night and the existence of magic as a whole using the Head Key.

Welcome to Matheson[]

“	I believe these belong to you now... the keys to the proverbial kingdom.	„
	~ Duncan to Nina.

After his brother is murdered, Duncan welcomes the Locke Family back to Keyhouse Manor and Matheson warmly, offering them all party hats to welcome them. Duncan gives them a tour, with Bode — the one family member unperturbed by Rendell's demise — particularly being amused by the vast house they are to live in. Kinsey begins unpacking her room, and reveals to Duncan that she is applying to art school in the summer. However he tells Nina that Keyhouse is perhaps not the best place for their family at that time; nevertheless, Nina tells him that they will stay. Leaving Keyhouse and flipping it off on his way to the car, Duncan is caught by Bode, who flips him off in his turn when he claims the middle finger has more than one meaning. It is unknown why he was ignorant of the imprisonment of Dodge inside the Wellhouse, but Bode claims there is a woman in there. Unable to enter the wellhouse given the locked gate, Duncan disbelieves Bode's claims.

Trapper/Keeper[]

“	Duncan's on his way down from Boston. So great to have him here to help us get settled.	„
	~ Nina

After exiting the upstairs bathroom, Duncan sees Bode, whom he has startled, holding a toy. He warmly assures him the toilet is impossible to clog. The following evening, he and Nina enjoyed a dinner of chow mein together, but when Nina asked him about his earlier years at Keyhouse, he had no answers to give, professing that a part of his life felt blipped out of his mind. Despite the response, Nina digs deeper, asking why he doesn’t remember given he was living in the house at the time.

Family Tree[]

“

What's going on? Always good to be back.

„

Two weeks after Dodge ambushed Bode, Duncan came down to Keyhouse Manor to stay for the weekend. Duncan visits Bode in his room and questions what he is doing. He tells him that he is mapping out the house, and goes on to ask him if he knows Chamberlin Locke. Duncan questions if it is the old guy in the painting and brushes off the question, remarking that he died over a hundred years ago. Nevertheless, Bode tells Duncan that he spoke to Chamberlain and he told him that he and Rendell used the keys when they were little, much to his alarm. After he dismisses the whole situation, Bode hugs him, saying it was okay he couldn't remember.

The Black Door[]

“

But it wasn't like what happened with Mom, though. Even when he was watching the memory, it was like, his brain couldn't process it or something. [...] But there was one memory he totally fixated on.

„

Bringing a bag into the lounge, Kinsey shows Duncan the memories from the cemetery. He is in awe, but confused until she reveals that they are his memories that were taken from him. Duncan looks at the memories, and reveals that they look quite familiar but he cannot make sense of the situation. Kinsey says the whole ordeal was a bad idea, however moments later Duncan is unable to remember even examining the memories. He had, however, fixated on a memory of him and his friends going down into the caves. Later, he was fighting a migraine, so he was unable to play with Bode, who went into the graveyard to explore instead. As he was beginning to recover, he went to check on Nina. She explained that she was feeling lost, and that she may be a bit unhinged considering a recent conversation she had with the simpleminded Ellie Whedon, having accused her of lying. He suggested she get out and they take the trio to Boston for a night off from their stress. Assuring him he was all right, Nina hugged him. He left for the time being, but as the gates opened and retracted, Sam Lesser emerged from the shadows and passed into the grounds, consumed with nihilstic intent.

Crown of Shadows[]

“	What, you guys have a raucous night or something last night?	„
	~ Duncan

The morning after a climactic showdown occurred at Keyhouse, Duncan returns back to Matheson whilst Nina makes breakfast for the children.

Personality[]

Being extremely compassionate, warm, and affable who can laugh at himself, Duncan typifies a laid-back and easy to get along with individual. He is intelligent and astute, though also naive and has some childish quirks and mannerisms. Despite this, he is also cowardly, being unwilling to sacrifice a loved one for what he falsely presumed could have prevented an apocalyptic event, resolving to fulfill Dodge's unknowingly righteous demands simply so Bode could live. Furthermore, he refused to fight her without all of her friends backing him up, utilizing escape tactics when she made quick work of her assailants, even leaving Kinsey to die.

Duncan is on the LGBT+ spectrum, as he is engaged to a member of the same sex named Bryan. He has not been known to express romantic interest in women although it may just not be shown to the audience yet, leaving it unclear whether he is homosexual or bisexual.

Powers and Abilities[]

Alchemy: Due to training from the ghost of Chamberlin Locke, Duncan is capable of using alchemy in combination with metalworking to create new keys. He created the Memory and Demon Keys and taught Tyler how to make the Alpha Key.
Control of Demons: Due to him being the creator of the Demon Key, Duncan is able to control the demons summoned by it because his blood is tethered to its magical effects.
Expert artist: A hugely overlooked ability of Duncan's is his artistry, as he taught women with mental illnesses how to paint, and he helped a six-year-old create very detailed maps of Keyhouse Manor.

Trivia[]

Duncan is the only of two known LGBT+ characters in Locke & Key, the other being Dodge.

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