Warning - This article contains spoilers for the season finale of Loki.
Marvel Studios concluded Season 1 of Loki on Disney+ with a bang, sending the God of Mischief into uncharted territory after his experience with the TVA.
The MCU delivered on one of its biggest characters of Phase 4 with the debut of Jonathan Majors’ Kang The Conqueror, although it was just the start of his presence within the MCU. His death at the hands of Sylvie seemingly sent the multiverse into complete chaos and potentially set the stage for more than a handful of future MCU entries.
Some of the TVA’s “finest” even appeared to play a role in Kang coming out of the shadows, including Tara Strong’s Miss Minutes and Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s Judge Ravonna Renslayer. The latter's future is also fairly murky after leaving through a TemPad door on her own path "in search of free will," traveling to a currently unknown destination.
Quite the shady character in her own right, the actress behind Renslayer and the show's head writer recently teased what could be coming in her future.
WHERE IN THE MULTIVERSE IS RENSLAYER?
Marvel Entertainment spoke with Loki head writer Michael Waldron and Judge Renslayer actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw teased how the character's story will continue from where she left off in Season 1.
After showcasing a dark side throughout the show, Waldron admitted that "she has the making of a very complex villain" with "her own set of principles and beliefs" that motivate her. Believing her mission "is for greater good," Waldron even mentioned that the judge "probably wishes that she never learned that the Time Keepers were fake" so she could continue down her original path:
“She has the making of a very complex villain that has her own set of principles and beliefs that drive her She doesn't believe that what she's doing is evil. She believes that the mission is for greater good, and Renslayer probably wishes that she never learned that the Time Keepers were fake, that they had just been able to keep doing this forever.”
Even while Renslayer's world falls apart around her, Waldron described her as "the good soldier of the TVA" and "a disciple to the bureaucracy." Rather than the organization's deceit "galvanizing her and making her question her life's purpose" as it did with Owen Wilson's Mobius, it only makes her "(react) more in anger" in her quest to "stay in power:"
“She's the good soldier of the TVA, just a disciple to the bureaucracy. Then it's revealed to be a lie to her. Instead of that galvanizing her and making her question her life's purpose, the way it did with Mobius, Renslayer wants to stay in power. She reacts more in anger.”
Mbatha-Raw picked up on "the idea that pretty much everyone in the TVA is a variant," calling it a "mind-blowing" moment. Looking at how "the Multiverse just is so epic" with "so much potential for what's on the other side" of the Time Door she used for her escape, she ultimately boiled it down to Renslayer "(wanting) revenge with whoever put this whole facade together:"
“The idea that pretty much everyone in the TVA is a variant, and that there are other variants of Renslayer in different times, that was kind of mind blowing to me. We just dipped our toe into [this] at the end of the show. But you realize that the Multiverse just is so epic. The possibilities are endless. There's so much potential for what's on the other side of that Time Door. And ultimately, she wants revenge with whoever put this whole facade together.”
The actress even cracked a joke when asked about Renslayer's parting thoughts when she leaves, simply saying “She's [thinking], ‘Peace out. Bye. Free will!’" as she laughed.
On a more serious note, Waldron concluded by admitting that Renslayer "wants to [find] who pulled the wool over her eyes" in this debacle. He holds back on the character's destination, only confirming that "she is a scary customer to be out there in the Multiverse" with such an intense mission:
“She wants to [find] who pulled the wool over her eyes. That's what she's going to go out in search of. She is a scary customer to be out there in the Multiverse. So we'll see what happens."
RENSLAYER GOING FULL VILLAIN?
While it's unclear where exactly Renslayer is headed after the season finale of Loki, it appears clear that it's going to be a pretty dark path down which she travels.
In the pages of Marvel Comics, the judge is involved in an on-again-off-again relationship with the newly-introduced Kang the Conqueror, sometimes as an adversary and other times as a love interest. Now that Jonathan Majors' big bad is officially ingrained within the MCU, there's a good chance that the bonds between him and Renslayer could be explored soon.
While it's clear that Renslayer is still on a quest for power, it will be interesting to see how her journey plays out, either in other shows or movies or in the recently confirmed second season of Loki. No matter where that comes, she's certainly going to pose a threat to anyone in her way, especially once her mission becomes more clear.
All six episodes of Loki are available to stream on Disney+.
