Chris Hemsworth broke his silence on the backlash to Thor: Love and Thunder, even acknowledging some of the movie's flaws.
The MCU's Phase 4 was the subject of far more criticism than most of the Infinity Saga projects. Thor: Love and Thunder perhaps faced the most backlash out of the bunch, being the subject of seven major criticisms for its humor, CGI, character arcs, and use of Christian Bale's Gorr the God Butcher.
Thor 4 has a Rotten Tomatoes critic score of 63%, which stands as the lowest in the franchise, beating out the previous low of 66% held by Thor: The Dark World.
Director Taika Waititi responded to some of these negative reviews, particularly those focusing on the comedic aspects, pointing out how silliness and crazy antics are not out of character for the God of Thunder in Marvel Comics.
Chris Hemsworth Responds to Thor 4 Criticism
Speaking with GQ Magazine, Thor actor Chris Hemsworth revealed his feelings behind Thor: Love and Thunder's backlash and negative reviews.
The actor explained how even his kids' friends weren't huge fans of the movie, pointing out how he had "a bunch of eight-year-olds critiquing [his] film" for having "too much humor" and how "the VFX weren't as good:"
“It’s a bunch of eight-year-olds critiquing my film. ‘We thought this one had too much humor, the action was cool but the VFX weren’t as good.’”
Hemsworth acknowledged how Love and Thunder "became too silly," but noted how "you just don't know how people are going to respond:"
“I cringe and laugh equally at it. I think we just had too much fun. It just became too silly. It’s always hard being in the center of it and having any real perspective… I love the process, it’s always a ride. But you just don’t know how people are going to respond.”
Can Thor Come Back Stronger After Love and Thunder?
Coming from Chris Hemsworth's point of view, it's always far easier to notice a movie's flaws by looking at the finished product with thousands of people to watch, analyze, and criticize than it would be during production with a more limited group of people developing their own vision for the story and character.
Perhaps the beauty of the ever-expanding MCU and massive content output is how it allows Marvel Studios and its creatives to experiment with different genres, tones, and styles. Unfortunately, it's simply inevitable that not every project will prove to be a hit for each and every viewer.
When it came to Thor: Ragnarok, fans responded well to the changes and tone that Taika Waititi brought to Chris Hemsworth's God of Thunder. With Thor: Love and Thunder, the filmmaker dialed all of those elements up with more humor and craziness, but as the actor himself admitted, perhaps those went too far.
There's no telling what's next for Thor, but the end of Love and Thunder promised his return and teased a face-off with Brett Goldstein's Hercules. Waititi has already revealed his one condition to return for Thor 5 while Hemsworth has also opened up on how any Thor comeback would require "something unique."
Hopefully, fans aren't left waiting too long for a resolution to Thor 4's cliffhanger, but as of now, there is no sign of when either of the godly rivals will be seen again. Marvel Studios will undeniably be hoping the God of Thunder's next hypothetic solo outing will face less criticism than his latest, even if it was a box office hit.
Thor: Love and Thunder is streaming now on Disney+.
