8 Awesome Cameos In Thor: Ragnarok That You Need To See

No offence intended to the first two Thor films - well, a little bit is intended to The Dark World - but Thor: Ragnarok is easily the best of the three movies to star the God of Thunder. Now that the threequel has been released in certain countries across the globe, we can safely say that it lives up to the hype surrounding it and delivers one of the most outright fun experiences you can have watching an MCU film. A big part of that success is its incredibly talented cast. Not only does it feature Chris Hemsworth on fine form - it's probably his best Marvel performance to date - but he's ably supported by the likes of Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Thompson and, of course, Tom Hiddleston. Not to mention we also get Anthony Hopkins, Karl Urban and Idris Elba. The two standouts, however, are the brilliant Cate Blanchett as the MCU's first female main villain Hela and the one and only Jeff Goldblum as the Grandmaster. But that's still not all. Thor: Ragnarok has many pleasant surprises and one of the best is its tendency to slip in an unexpected cameo to add an extra laugh. From familiar Marvel faces to superhero fan favourites to Hollywood A-listers, these are the eight awesome cameos that you need to look out for when you see the film. Warning: we will be delving into the movie's plot from here on in, so if you want to stay spoiler-free, you may want to bookmark this page and come back later. Doctor Strange Here's one that isn't a big surprise, but is still awesome all the same. Ever since the post-credits scene of Doctor Strange featured the Sorcerer Supreme chatting with Thor, we were all set to expect the character to turn up in Thor: Ragnarok. As it is, Benedict Cumberbatch's hero doesn't take up a lot of screentime, but he does make a very memorable appearance early on in the film. After Thor discovers that Loki has been impersonating his father, the brothers travel to New York to find Odin. While there, they're invited (well, Thor is, Loki is kidnapped with a portal) to Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum at 177a Bleecker Street. Stephen reveals that he keeps tabs on those who are a threat to Earth and he wants to know why Thor has brought Loki of all people back to the planet. After a dizzying jaunt around the Sanctum, Strange agrees to help them and whisks the pair off to Norway, where Odin's ended up. It's always great when Marvel heroes cross paths and much hilarity is mined here from Thor's reactions to Strange's magic and the good doctor's sardonic attitude. It's also fun to see old friends Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hiddleston share the screen, even if just for a few seconds. Taika Waititi Taika Waititi isn't just a director, but a gifted comedic performer, too, and he couldn't resist inserting himself into Thor: Ragnarok. As we'd learned previously, Waititi voices Korg, the rock-skinned gladiator, who we've been waiting to see in the movies for ages. Waititi's version isn't much like the character from the comics, but fans probably won't care too much due to how loveable the director is in the role. Despite being a revolutionary warrior, Korg is a laid-back, optimistic guy who quickly befriends Thor and later journeys to Asgard to help the Avenger defeat Hela. He's joined by another Planet Hulk character in the movie, too, as we also see Miek, who's reimagined as Korg's silent sidekick. At the end of the film, Korg remains on board the Asgardian refugee ship, suggesting he'll continue his adventures with Thor. This has been confirmed by Kevin Feige as well, who revealed that both Korg and Miek would return in future MCU movies. We imagine that he's referring to Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4, most likely in cameo parts. Clancy Brown Most people would probably know his voice best as Mr. Krabs from Spongebob Squarepants, but Clancy Brown is a bit of a legend to superhero lovers. The versatile actor has portrayed some of comic book's biggest villains, including Lex Luthor, Taskmaster, Red Hulk, Mr. Freeze and Parallax in 2011's Green Lantern. And let's not forget his live-actions appearances in the likes of Daredevil and The Flash. Brown returns to the superhero genre for the umpteenth time for Thor: Ragnarok. He's perfectly cast in the small but key role as Surtur, the fire demon who's fated to bring about Ragnarok, the Twilight of the Gods. The giant horned, flaming, skull-faced monster is an impressive CGI creation and Brown's gravelly tones bring the villain to life perfectly. This being Ragnarok, the character's self-important bubble is burst a few times by Thor and Hulk, which adds even more entertainment value. It's worth noting that Brown didn't provide the motion capture for Surtur - that was actually Taika Waititi again. Still, the actor can now add "Destroyer of Asgard" to a resume that already includes "Nemesis of Superman," "The Murderer of The Punisher's Family" and "Personification of Fear." Clearly, you shouldn't get on this guy's bad side. Luke Hemsworth You've probably heard that both Chris Hemsworth and his brother Liam were in the running to play Thor before the former eventually nabbed the role of the God of Thunder. It seems there's just something about those Hemsworth boys that make them perfect to play the character. And, thanks to Thor: Ragnarok, we can now add a third one into the mix. While masquerading as Odin, Loki spends his time lounging around and watching a stage show all about his own life. In the play within the movie, his brother Thor may look familiar. That's because he's portrayed by Luke Hemsworth - Chris' real-life older brother. It's a brilliantly meta casting choice and, though it will go over the heads of most viewers, it'll get a chuckle out of those in the know. It's also worth mentioning that the addition of Luke Hemsworth makes three Westworld stars within the cast of Ragnarok. Tessa Thompson and, of course, Anthony Hopkins were also regulars in the hit HBO sci-fi/western drama. Hemsworth played the park's chief of security in the show, Ashley Stubbs. Sam Neill Though they don't share any scenes together, Jurassic Park lovers will note that Thor: Ragnarok features not one but two of the stars of the classic 1993 movie. Alongside Jeff Goldblum as the Grandmaster, Sam Neill has a walk-on role as the Asgardian actor playing Odin in Loki's play. Taika Waititi spoke to Radio Times about the cameo recently and had this to say: “And incidentally, is it the first film since Jurassic Park that Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill have both appeared in the same movie? This is cross-universe stuff here." The main reason Neill is involved is because he previously worked with the director on his last film, Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Waititi also brought two other stars from that pic onto his Marvel project: Cohen Holloway and Rachel House, who plays the Grandmaster's assistant. On why he did this, he explained: “You know, I often put in a lot of my actors from my other films… that for me makes it more of my film.” Waititi explained of the castings. It makes me feel more grounded, and a bit more relaxed.” Stan Lee It just wouldn't be an MCU movie without the required chucklesome cameo from the father of Marvel. Don't worry, though, because the already cameo-stuffed Thor: Ragnarok still finds time to play the ongoing game of "Where's Stan Lee?" In this film, Lee has the honour of being the one to cut off Thor's hair, despite the God of Thunder's protests. Lee appears as the Grandmaster's hairdresser on Sakaar in a pair of crazy space-glasses. Later on, Thor complains to Hulk that "a creepy old guy" chopped off his blonde locks. This is the third time we've seen Stan in space, after 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy and its 2017 sequel. Speaking of Guardians Vol. 2, seeing as that movie confirmed Lee's cameos are all the same character, it's tempting to try and work out how this one fits in. The end of Vol. 2 saw him failing to hitch a ride back to Earth with the Watchers, so maybe he ended up falling through a wormhole to Sakaar at some point on his journey? This was also the fourth and final cameo that Stan Lee filmed in one day, after his roles in Doctor Strange, Spider-Man: Homecoming and Vol. 2. Three of the four were directed by James Gunn. Black Widow Thought three Avengers was enough for one Thor movie? Guess again, as another of Earth's Mightiest Heroes also turns up in Ragnarok. Marvel should give themselves a pat on the back for keeping this one a secret. Stuck on Sakaar, Thor and Hulk attempt to escape in the S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet that took the Jade Giant into space at the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron. When the controls are activated, a pre-recorded message featuring Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow appears, which instantly calms Hulk down and returns him to Bruce Banner. “Nice work, big guy,” Natasha says, in a scene which is meant to be set during Ultron's climax. “We don’t know where Ultron’s headed but you’re going very high very fast so I need you to turn this bird around, ok? We can’t track you in stealth mode, so… I need you to help me out, ok?” Johansson's role is a small but very welcome cameo, presumably filmed during production on Infinity War. Widow's red hair looks like a wig in this scene, too, which fits with the blonde look we know that the character has in the upcoming team-up movie. Matt Damon While all of these cameos are awesome, the most eyebrow-raising has to be the guy who's playing Loki in the God of Mischief's Asgardian stage play. If you were sitting in the theater saying "Hey, that Loki actor looks like Matt Damon," then you weren't imagining things. That really is Matt Damon! It's a ridiculously tiny part for the Jason Bourne star, and he's kind of hard to recognize under a Tom Hiddleston-esque long black wig. Still, how did Taika Waititi pull off this casting coup and what was the thinking behind it? The director explained to Radio Times: “That was just through contacts. If Loki was gonna write a play about his death, then he would want to get the most talented actors he could, the biggest stars of Asgardian theatre, to come and do this thing.” Superhero movie fans have been calling for Damon to appear in a comic book film for years, ever since he was offered the part of Two-Face back in 2007's The Dark Knight. Let's hope he's got a taste for it now so he might be more inclined to appear opposite his old pal Ben Affleck in a future DCEU movie. Be sure to catch Thor: Ragnarok in US cinemas on November 3rd.