Chris Hemsworth, the star of Thor: Love and Thunder, wants Thor to have a very different tone if he returns to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. When Taika Waititi took over as director for Thor: Ragnarok, the god of thunder underwent a complete tonal transformation, with the acclaimed director bringing humor to the forefront. The comedic Thor was retained for the sequel due to overwhelming positive response to the change. Thor: Love and Thunder upped the humour, but the film received mixed reviews from critics and fans. The unexpected turn of events has cast doubt on Thor’s MCU future.
Now that Thor: Love and Thunder has been out for a few months, Hemsworth is opening up more about his experience working on the film and what he wants to see from Thor if he comes back to the MCU. Thor’s future was brought up during a recent interview with Josh Horowitz for the Happy Sad Confused Podcast. After so many iterations of the character, Hemsworth was asked what’s next for the god of thunder. He admitted that Thor’s MCU return will be very different from what audiences have seen recently.
“You look at Thor 1 and 2, they were quite similar. Ragnarok and Love and Thunder are similar. I think it’s about reinventing it. I’ve had such a unique opportunity with Infinity War and Endgame to do very drastic things with the character. I enjoy that, I like keeping people on their toes. It keeps me on my toes. It keeps me invested. I’ve said this before but when it becomes too familiar, I think there’s a risk in getting lazy then because I know what I’m doing. I don’t know if I’m even invited back, but if I was, I think it would have to be a drastically different version in tone, everything, just for my own sanity… [laughs] Thor lost his mind that last one. He’s got to figure it out now.”
Why Does Thor’s Comedic Tone Need To Change After Love & Thunder?
Chris Hemsworth has always had a comedic presence as Thor, and even the first Thor used his fish-out-of-water situation to make audiences laugh. This tone was mostly carried over into his appearances in the Avengers films and his solo sequel. While the comedy in Thor: Ragnarok was mostly well received, the comedic tone in Thor: Love and Thunder was arguably overdone, even when compared to other Marvel films. This applied not only to Chris Hemsworth’s Thor Odinson, but to all of the sequel’s characters, giving Thor 4 an overly silly tone, especially given the threat level that Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) should have brought.
The more mixed reaction to Thor: Love and Thunder appears to indicate that audiences are not as fond of the fully comedic Thor. While Hemsworth has previously stated that he loves the new direction, it appears that even he is not completely on board with this tone keeping for future appearances. If that’s the case, Thor’s comedic tone will have to change if Marvel Studios wants to keep Hemsworth on board. This could mean that Taika Waititi will not return for Thor 5.
With Hemsworth recently hinting that he may be ready to leave the MCU and watch Thor die, the direction of a possible tone shift for the character is clear. The first two Thor films were more dramatic than the ones directed by Waititi, but not nearly as serious as MCU entries such as the Captain America films. If Marvel grants Hemsworth’s wish to kill Thor, the following installment must strike a tone capable of delivering an emotionally satisfying conclusion. The comedic tone of Thor: Love and Thunder does not entirely fit in that regard, which could be another reason Hemsworth wants the change.
Source: Happy Sad Confused Podcast