Thor: Ragnarok was always going to be highly anticipated, by virtue of it being both a Marvel movie, and an important stepping stone toward Avengers: Infinity War. However, for those that have been paying attention, this particular franchise entry is especially exciting, because it boasts a big-budget collaboration between Chris Hemsworth and Taika Waititi.
These two artists have a very specific, very funny sense of humour, which has led to predictions of a unique vein of comedy being introduced into the Thor film series. This has now been confirmed by Tom Hiddleston – also known as Loki – while in conversation with Fandango promoting his upcoming film, Kong: Skull Island.
“At the end of The Dark World, Loki is on the throne. At the beginning of Ragnarok, Thor has a few questions, Loki is endearingly enigmatic about providing answers. Taika Waititi is such a spirited, hilarious individual, and he and Chris [Hemsworth] became very fast friends.
What was great for me to see was to see their friendship kind of blossom, and they brought out the best in each other, and started making stuff up, and I can confidently say right now that this will be the funniest depiction of the character of Thor that you’ve ever seen. I personally have known for almost ten years that Chris Hemsworth is hilarious.”
Academy Award nominee Taika Waititi is best known for his brilliant comedic writing, directing, and acting – most notably What We Do In The Shadows and Hunt For The Wilderpeople – which meant that his hiring for Thor: Ragnorok indicated that Marvel was taking that film in a very specific direction. Add to that the fact that Thor himself – Chris Hemsworth – has not only proven himself to be adept at a comedic Thor, but has also delivered a pitch perfect comedy role in 2016’s Ghostbusters, and we do indeed have all the elements of the funniest version of Thor to date.
It’s heartening to hear this confirmed by Tom Hiddleston, because it supports the tone created by Taika Waititi and Chris Hemsworth in their Team Thor short in 2016 – which was designed to explain the absence of Thor and Hulk from Captain America: Civil War. That short was entirely hilarious – featuring Thor in board shorts, sharing an Australian apartment with an office worker named Darryl, and attempting to counsel Tony Stark and Steve Rogers through their ‘relationship problems’ via dictated email. Another short was recently released, striking the same tone and featuring Thor and Darryl discussing rent payments.
While Thor: Ragnarok certainly promises a great deal of Marvel-brand action and spectacle, it’s the Waititi-Hemsworth brand of humour that promises to make the film a unique addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
