Thor: Love And Thunder Is So 'Crazy Wild,' Taika Waititi Is Surprised He's Allowed To Make It
When you have as many spinning plates as Marvel Studios does, it can be easy for some projects (as excited as fans may be for them) to take a backseat to others at any given time. With "Hawkeye" currently streaming on Disney+ in weekly installments and, on the cinematic side of things, all eyes focused on the multiverse madness in this month's "Spider-Man: No Way Home," our collective attention spans can't quite keep up with every production currently in-development — understandably so. Once the calendar flips over to 2022 and the marketing runway is cleared for "Thor: Love and Thunder," however, expect that to change very quickly.
Filmmaker Taika Waititi famously reinvigorated the character of Thor with 2017's "Thor: Ragnarok" and Marvel, in a complete no-brainer of a decision, invited him back for the next installment. As you might imagine, Waititi seems to be turning things up a notch this time around with the return of Natalie Portman as a Mjolnir-wielding Jane Foster and the additions of top names such as Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, and much of the "Guardians of the Galaxy" cast, as well. Waititi is usually the one bragging about his upcoming movies and setting extremely high expectations, but this time it's Marvel's Director of Visual Development and artist Andy Park doing the talking on his behalf.
"He Shouldn't Be Allowed to Make a Movie Like This"
More so than many other kinds of movies, even on similar budgets, the Marvel Cinematic Universe relies on its visual design to an incredible degree. Artist Andy Park has been heavily involved in the art department ever since 2011's "Thor," giving him an extended firsthand look at the evolution of the Marvel superheroes over the years and making his work on "Thor: Love and Thunder" something of a full-circle moment for him. Park, who is also serving as concept illustrator on "Hawkeye," spoke to Screen Rant about working with Taika Waititi again, the spectacle we can expect from "Love and Thunder," and how far it will push boundaries. He told them:
"There's a reason why there's been over a decade of successful movies and just why this franchise is growing. So 'Thor: Love and Thunder' falls right into that where it's just pushing the boundaries of what's comfortable and what should be expected. You'll be surprised and push these characters and the visuals go along with that. I think [Waititi] said it in some interview where he's just like, he's surprised that he's even, he shouldn't be allowed to make a movie like this. And I get it. This movie is crazy wild. It's so much fun. And I simply cannot wait for everyone to see it. Because it was so much fun to work on and design so many characters and do keyframes for. It's going to be a good one. It's going to be fun."
Park is likely referring to this interview quote from Waititi, where the typically exuberant filmmaker went on to wryly describe the sequel as, "It's very different from 'Ragnarok.' It's crazier. I'll tell you what's different. There'll be far more emotion in this film. And a lot more love. And a lot more thunder. And a lot more Thor, if you've seen the photos." The film is still a little ways off and there's plenty of other MCU adventures to get through in the meantime, but I hardly need to be sold on another Waititi superhero movie at this point. "Thor: Love and Thunder" is scheduled to release on May 6, 2022.