Tag: Thor: Love and Thunder

Posted on in Television News

‘Loki’: Jonathan Majors Expected To Indeed Appear In The Disney+ Series

Back in December, Senior Entertainment Reporter Brandon Katz of the Observer dropped a juicy rumor on the Post Cred Podcast that Jonathan Majors (Da 5 Bloods, Lovecraft Country), who had been recently cast as Kang The Conqueror in Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania, was going to be showing-up first in Tom Hiddleston’s Loki series in June.

Well, The Ronin has recently come across similar information independently of Katz/Observer, which would bolster his original claim that we’ll see Jonathan’s MCU introduction in the Disney+ show before the release of Ant-Man 3. However, the size or scope of the appearance has yet to be determined but given the character’s connection to the Time Variance Agency, it could have plot importance to future MCU projects beyond the Ant-Man sequel set to shoot this summer at Pinewood Studios UK.

KC Walsh from Geeks Worldwide also backed up Brandon’s claim back in December.

Last month, Katz outlined in a piece for the Observer how Kang could be introduced in Loki.

The visually-striking show is said to help establish some of the ground rules of The Multiverse, which will be explored again in future releases such as Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness and possibly even more. I personally hope that Marvel Studios doesn’t overuse the Multiverse too much as the sci-fi narrative tool could become a storytelling crutch similar to time-travel.

It’s head writer is Michael Waldron (Doctor Strange 2, Rick & Morty) with Kate Herron (Sex Education) directing the episodes as production took place in Atlanta, Georgia.

Loki will debut June 9 on Disney+ with subsequent episodes dropping regularly on Wednesdays.

LOKI – Picking up immediately after Loki steals the Tesseract (again), he finds himself called before the Time Variance Authority, a bureaucratic organization that exists outside of time and space, forced to answer for his crimes against the timeline and given a choice: face deletion from reality or assist in catching an even greater threat.

Posted on in Film News

‘The Mandalorian’ Cinematographer Baz Idoine Confirms He’s Working On ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’

Marvel’s Thor: Love & Thunder (working title The Big Salad) has been filming at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia with director Taika Waititi returning to make the fourth installment. The film’s mysterious cinematographer has been officially revealed.

Speaking with New Zealand outlet Kea, Baz Idoine confirmed he is currently working on Thor: Love & Thunder. He is best known for his Emmy-winning work on The Mandalorian series and was the second unit cinematographer on American Sniper and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

IDOINE: “I can’t talk much about them, but I’m working in Australia at the moment on Thor: Love and Thunder which I’ll be working on until the end of 2021. Then, I’ll just see what happens. Personally, my wife and I are hoping to move back to New Zealand next year.”

Taika and Baz previously worked together on The Mandalorian. This could potentially explain why The Book of Boba Fett was placed into production in the fall instead of Season 3 of The Mandalorian as the show’s cinematographer has been busy working on a Marvel Studios movie. I’m curious if the two will reunite on Taika’s untitled Star Wars movie he is developing for Lucasfilm.

Love & Thunder will introduce the cosmic beings known as The Olympians and will feature cameos from many members of Guardians of The Galaxy, one of the final scenes of Avengers: Endgame saw Thor leaving Earth with the Guardians to go on an adventure in space.

The film’s cast consists of Natalie Portman as Jane Foster aka Lady Thor, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Christian Bale as Gorr The God Butcher, Tessa Thompson as King Valkyrie of New Asgard, Russell Crowe as Zeus, Matt Damon as fake Loki, Melissa McCarthy as fake Hela, Sam Neill as fake Odin, Luke Hemsworth as fake Thor, Jaimie Alexander as Lady Sif, Chris Pratt as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Dave Bautista as Drax The Destroyer, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Taika as the lovable Korg, and Sean Gunn as Kraglin.

Thor: Love & Thunder will open in theaters on May 6, 2022.

SOURCE: KEA

Posted on in Features

The Olympians Arriving In The MCU Could Lead To A Massive Conflict In ‘Eternals 2’

This week Russell Crowe announced that he would be playing Zeus in Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love & Thunder this also inadvertently confirmed that Marvel Studios is planning on finally introducing The Olympians to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, their version of the pantheon of Greek gods and demigods.

Like how Marvel tweaked Norse mythology for the comic book version of The Asgardians, the group are cosmic beings that reside in the realm of Olympus (similar to Asgard) and were worshiped by humans.

Their arrival could have an impact on the larger narrative of an upcoming franchise outside of Thor: Love & Thunder.

While we don’t know how The Olympians really feel about The Eternals in the MCU, there was an alliance between Asgard and Olympus against the incoming heroes that will be featured in the upcoming film directed by Oscar nominee Chloe Zhao (Nomadland). A looming conflict between Eternals and Olympians could be perfect fodder for Eternals 2, however, this would depend on if Marvel plans on exploring the tension between the two god-like groups.

I’ll be curious to see what role they play in Thor: Love & Thunder and if they’ll be explained in Eternals.

Interestingly enough, The Olympians made their Marvel debut in Venus issue #1 back in 1948 with the comic focusing on the obscure character of Venus aka Aphrodite Ourania, the goddess of love and beauty. Venus is a founding member of The Agents of Atlas led by Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo and daughter of Russell Crowe’s Zeus, making her the half-sister of both Hercules and Ares.

Shang-Chi & The Legend of The Ten Rings could be the entry point for The Atlas Empire.

John Aaron aka Ares, the god of war, has been a longtime villain in the Marvel Comics universe first debuting in Thor #129 back in 1966 and even joined the ranks of the Dark Avengers, a group that is rumored to coming eventually to the MCU. He’s paired-up with other Marvel villains over the years such as Norman Osborn and Enchantress. Ares also joined the ranks of The Mighty Avengers and had a role in Secret Invasion, which is getting a series on Disney+ that recently added Olivia Colman and Emilia Clarke to the growing cast.

Likely the most notable Olympian is Hercules, who goes back to the Jack Kirby era making him a prime candidate to finally get a live-action incarnation considering the Eternals was Kirby’s baby. Hercules was a member of The Avengers when Eternals’ Sersi (played by Gemma Chan) and Dane Whitman aka Black Knight (played by Kit Harington) were on the roster. He’s been recently on a lineup of Avengers that echoes where the MCU currently is with members such as Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson aka Captain America, Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster aka Lady, Paul Bettany’s Vision, Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan aka Ms. Marvel, and Tom Holland’s Peter Parker aka Spider-Man. Adding Hercules to a new Avengers roster or another superhero team wouldn’t be terribly shocking.

Many fans are assuming that Russell Crowe’s Zeus is likely going to get killed by Christian Bale’s Gorr The God Butcher in Thor: Love & Thunder, but that remains to be seen as he could end up taking the place of Anthony Hopkins’ Odin.

It’s hard to imagine that Marvel wouldn’t attempt to sign-up director Chloe Zhao for the Eternals sequel given that she co-wrote the script and is going to be heavily in-demand if her film Nomadland does well at this weekend’s Academy Awards ceremony, all but assumed given how well it’s been doing at other award shows.

Posted on in Film News

‘Thor 4’: Russell Crowe Confirms He’s Playing Zeus Allowing Fellow Olympians Hercules & Ares To Finally Join The MCU

Taika Waititi is assembling an impressive cast for Marvel’s fourth Thor movie which already sees Natalie Portman as Jane Foster aka Lady Thor, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Christian Bale as Gorr The God Butcher, Tessa Thompson as King Valkyrie of New Asgard, Matt Damon as fake Loki, Melissa McCarthy as fake Hela, Sam Neill as fake Odin, Luke Hemsworth as fake Thor, Jaimie Alexander as Lady Sif, Chris Pratt as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Dave Bautista as Drax The Destroyer, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Taika as the lovable Korg, and Sean Gunn as Kraglin.

One late-stage addition was Oscar-winner Russell Crowe (Gladiator, The Nice Guys, Man of Steel) landing a secret role in the Marvel flick and the actor has now revealed who he’s playing on the Melbourne show Joy Breakfast with The Murphys. Crowe announced that he is playing the Marvel Comics version of Greek God, Zeus. The father of Marvel superhero Hercules, a character part of The Olympians (a cosmic take on Greek mythology) and future member of The Avengers.

Having Zeus in the mix could allow Hercules to eventually move his way into the MCU alongside the villainous Ares (member of The Dark Avengers). It was bound to happen as they’ve scaled-back the Asgardians after the destruction of Asgard and with the introduction of the Eternals in their own movie, it was only a matter of time before the cosmic version of the Olympians (connected to the Eternals) would make their debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

There is a strong chance that Crowe’s Zeus could be killed-off by Bale’s God Butcher, given the nickname we’ll likely see some gods get dusted before he clashes with Thor and Lady Thor. Russell and Christian previously worked together on the western remake 3:10 To Yuma from James Mangold (The Wolverine, Ford v. Ferrari, Logan), so a reunion might actually be quite fun to watch. What isn’t known is if we’ll see other Olympians appear in Thor: Love & Thunder or somewhere else down the line.

I wouldn’t be terribly shocked if Marvel announced a Hercules: Prince of Power series for Disney+ at some point as the character would certainly warrant his own series similar to Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, Moon Knight, and Ironheart giving the superhero a chance to be explored in a episodic format.

It’s kind of neat that we’ll potentially have Black Knight, Sersi, and Hercules all mingling in the MCU in the very near future at the same time, as the trio were part of an incarnation of the Avengers lineup. Suggesting the studio isn’t just building-up towards Young Avengers and The Thunderbolts/Dark Avengers but other splinter teams of the Avengers.

I’m sure fans already have their fan-cast for Herc, but comedian and podcaster Jon Gabrus has been campaigning for a while now to play the superhero. Interestingly enough, Russell’s The Nice Guys co-star Ryan Gosling (former Micky Mouse Club actor) had actually played a different version of the demi-god in Young Hercules, a prequel series to the Sam Raimi-produced series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys from the 1990s.

The sequel was penned by Taika Waititi and Jennifer Kaytin Robinson.

Production is still taking place in Sydney and it’s possible we could be getting more casting surprises in the coming weeks/months.

Thor: Love & Thunder will open in theaters on May 6, 2022.

SOURCE: JOY BREAKFAST

Posted on in Film News

The Grandmaster Might Be Indeed Returning For ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’ – Jeff Goldblum Spotted In Sydney

Thor: Love & Thunder will see the return of the Loki play as seen in set photos and it’s expected that actor Sam Neill (Jurassic Park) will be back as Odin in that play, reprising a brief cameo from Thor: Ragnarok. That play will include Matt Damon as Loki, Luke Hemsworth as Thor, and Melissa McCarthy as Hela.

Interestingly enough, Sam Neill posted an image on Twitter of himself with Jurassic Park and Jurassic World: Dominion co-star Jeff Goldbum together in Sydney, where production is taking place on Thor: Love & Thunder at Fox Studios Australia. The pair also happened to have both appeared in Taika’s Thor: Ragnarok with Jeff playing cosmic villain The Grandmaster.

There seems to be a strong possibility Jeff might be in town to shoot something for the sequel, could we see a return of The Grandmaster?

Goldblum told BuzzFeed he was considering a return back in late 2019 and was already recording voice over for The Grandmaster in the Disney+ animated series What…If?

GOLDBLUM: “Hey, we’re talking about it, in fact. You know, I hope so. I love Taika Waititi, he’s a great director and a friend of mine, so I hope so…But I played the part again a couple of days ago. I went to the Disney studios and I recorded the Grandmaster’s voice for an episode of a show that’s gonna be on Disney+ called What If…?”

Last weekend, Russell Crowe was seen with Taika Waititi and Chris Hemsworth at a South Sydney Rabbitohs game, only for his role in Thor: Love & Thunder to be announced days later. While not a iron-shut case that Jeff is reprising the role of The Grandmaster, it’s been noted that most high-profile actors in the area have been connected to the sequel and seeing a former cast member of Thor: Ragnarok, who played it’s secondary villain could suggest he might be there to film something for the Marvel sequel.

Jeff also would have had to spend two weeks in a quarantine hotel before taking this photo with Sam.

Thor: Love & Thunder is set to be released on May 6, 2022, unless there is another Marvel Studios slate shift in the future.

SOURCE: SAM NEILL

Posted on in Film News

Russell Crowe Reportedly Joins Marvel’s ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’

After social media posts revealed that Russell Crowe, Chris Hemsworth, and director Taika Waititi hung out at a South Sydney Rabbitohs game in Sydney over the weekend. It looks like he’s secured himself a part in their upcoming MCU installment as Deadline is reporting that Crowe has landed an undisclosed role in Thor: Love & Thunder. However, it’s still unclear how much screen time Russell will actually get and even what the character is.

Production on the Thor sequel kicked-off back in January and has been mostly taking place at Fox Studios Australia located in Sydney, New South Wales Australia. The same facility used to film Riley Scott’s Alien: Covenant and Marvel’s Shang-Chi & The Legend of The Ten Rings.

The Oscar-winner is no stranger to action flicks as he played Jor-El in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel and earned an Oscar for his role in Ridley Scott’s epic Gladiator. He also nabbed Oscar nominations for A Beautiful Mind and Michael Mann’s The Insider.

Crowe isn’t the only DC Comics alum in the cast as former Batman, Christian Bale, is playing the film’s main villain called Gorr The God Butcher. A pale skinned alien creature that likely will require motion-capture similar to Thanos and The Children of Thanos.

Taika is also said to have a role in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad. His role is most likely voicing the cosmic villain Starro after it was revealed in the latest trailer that Sly Stallone would be voicing King Shark in the DC sequel. This would make Waititi DC Comics alum as well just like Crowe and Bale.

The Aussie actor joins a rather large cast that also includes Hemsworth as Thor, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster aka Lady Thor, Tessa Thompson as King Valkyrie of New Asgard, Chris Pratt as Star-Lord, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Dave Bautista as Drax The Destroyer, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Sean Gunn as Kraglin, Jaimie Alexander as Sif, Taika Waititi as Korg, Matt Damon, Luke Hemsworth, and Melissa McCarthy.

Disney has given Thor: Love & Thunder a release date of May 6, 2022.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News

New ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’ Set Photos Include First Looks At Jane Foster & Valkyrie Hanging Out In New Asgard

We recently saw set photos from Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love & Thunder that confirmed the return of the Loki play along with Matt Damon, Luke Hemsworth, and Melissa McCarthy being part of the scene. Also, we saw multiple members of the Guardians of The Galaxy shooting scenes as well but looks like those will be more brief any originally thought.

Some new photos from the Daily Mail reveal Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster aka Lady Thor with what looks like some Earthbound Asgard Warriors, potentially from New Asgard. They also include the first look at Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie, who is wearing a pinstripe suit in the photos. It certainly looks like the scenes are taking place in New Asgard and hint towards Jane’s transformation into Lady Thor.

The Asgardian guards/soldiers in the set photos have an interesting Earthbound military look to them but you can notice some are still using spears and shields.

I guess we’ll have to wait to see Christian Bale as Gorr The God Butcher as the character might end-up being motion-capture. We’ll likely know for sure if he’s spotted in a motion-capture suit.

It remains to be seen if we’re dealing with The Multiverse in Thor: Love & Thunder, given that it’s supposed to be a big part of Phase 4 and the Loki series will seemingly be the first project covering it in any real depth via Time Variance Agency.

SOURCE: DAILY MAIL

Posted on in Film News

‘Thor: Love & Thunder’ Set Photos Confirm The Loki Play Has Returned & Melissa McCarthy Spotted In Hela Costume

Filming has been underway on Thor: Love & Thunder in Sydney, Australia and some new set photos posted by the Daily Mail released confirmed that the Loki play is coming back with Melissa McCarthy taking a new part.

You can see in the set photos that Melissa McCarthy is in Cate Blanchett’s Hela costume along with the return of Matt Damon’s Loki and Luke Hemsworth’s Thor. This would suggest that Damon’s return was indeed to reprise this Asgardian actor character from Thor: Ragnarok and could mean that McCarthy is also playing another Asgardian.

New Asgard is expected to be a tourist location on Earth as revealed in concept art shown last year by director Taika Waititi during an Instagram stream. Which could explain the return of the play despite the destruction of Asgard.

Multiple Guardians of The Galaxy actors were also spotted on set previously.

SOURCE: DAILY MAIL

Posted on in Film News

Idris Elba Reprising Heimdall Role For ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’? – Spotted With Chris Hemsworth & Matt Damon In Australia

Actor Idris Elba is currently in Australia shooting the George Miller film Three Thousand Years of Longing and given the proximity to Marvel’s Thor: Love & Thunder production there is some speculation he could end up reprising the Heimdall role.

There is a potential hint that could end up happening.

A new Instagram photo posted by Chris Hemsworth over the weekend on from an 1980s birthday party features himself with Matt Damon and Elba.

You might be asking why would Heimdall be coming back? He was killed-off in Avengers: Infinity War. True, but there are teases from the Loki trailer Elba might have shot a cameo for that Disney+ series (Loki mentions Heimdall by name) alongside Jaimie Alexander’s Lady Sif (also expected for Love & Thunder). There are a few ways to have Heimdall come back, The Multiverse and flashbacks being the most reasonable options.

Oscar-winner Christian Bale was confirmed by Marvel Studios in December as playing the film’s alien villain Gorr The God Butcher.

Filming has been underway since last month at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney with multiple Guardians of The Galaxy actors spotted on the set.

However, unlike other actors we know that Idris is specifically there for another movie production and his presence in Australia doesn’t automatically mean he’ll end up in the film. There is just an extremely good chance that it happens.

SOURCE: CHRIS HEMSWORTH

Posted on in Television News

Marvel’s Multiverse Series ‘Loki’ Will Debut June 11th On Disney+

Today, it was announced that Marvel Studios’ third live-action series, Loki, will debut on the streaming service Disney+ starting on June 11th, a month later than previously expected.

It’s cast directed by Kate Herron includes Tom Hiddleston, Owen Wilson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sophia Di Martino, Wunmi Mosaku and Richard E. Grant. The showrunner, Michael Waldron, is also working on Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness.

The series is said to have direct connections to the Doctor Strange and Thor sequels as it will focus on the Multiverse along with the introduction of the Time Variance Agency, the force that polices those that tinker with the timelines. Loki, after the events of Avengers: Endgame starts playing around in different eras in Earth’s history which lands him on TVA’s radar.

WandaVision is going to wrap-up soon with The Falcon & The Winter Soldier starting to air on March 19th.

SOURCE: MARVEL/DISNEY