Film critic John Kenneth Muir suggests that Prince of Darkness serves as a parable for the AIDS epidemic that was at its peak during the time the film was made. Throughout the film, demonic possession is depicted as something that is transmitted like a communicable disease, via fluid passed between people. Muir goes on to note a number of references to homosexuality in the film, namely regarding the character of Walter, who makes several statements implying that he is gay (although he briefly flirted with Lisa, one of the female characters). In particular, Muir notes a sequence in which Walter, attacked by a number of possessed women while trapped inside a closet, emerges and flees. In addition to this, Muir writes that the film "pointedly asks some rather big questions about human nature, our existence, and the universe at large."