Prior to the release of Avengers: Age of Ultron earlier this year, both Idris Elba and Tom Hiddleston were primed to play a part in Joss Whedon’s sequel in some shape or form, and it was only when the blockbuster sequel released in May that it was revealed to be within Thor’s nightmarish dream sequence. How and ever, as it turns out, the latter actor – who plays fan-favorite villain Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – was conspicuously absent from the final cut released in theaters and now Hiddleston has spilled the beans on Marvel’s decision to axe him from the scene.
Per Digital Spy, the Crimson Peak star touched upon his powerful role as the God of Mischief, and why it was ultimately the test audiences that sealed the studio’s decision to remove Hiddleston’s Loki from Age of Ultron entirely.
[zerg]After occupying the role of the chief villain in the original Avengers, members of the audience who were perhaps less versed in the minutia of the MCU were fooled into thinking that Loki was somehow in control of James Spader’s Ultron – pulling his strings, if you will – and Marvel head honcho Kevin Feige was conscious of the fact that keeping Loki in the film would have detracted from Ultron’s aura.
“I was part of the dream sequence for Thor in the film. I shot for a day and enjoyed it very much,” Hiddleston explained to Digital Spy. “But in test screenings, audiences had over-emphasized Loki’s role; they thought that Loki was controlling Ultron. It was imbalancing audience’s expectations.
Looking further afield and Hiddleston’s role in the MCU is anything but a sure-thing, with the actor claiming he is in the dark about whether he’ll return for Thor: Ragnarok. Smoke and mirrors or genuine bafflement? We’ll let you decide on that one.
Avengers: Age of Ultron is out now on Blu-Ray and DVD.
