The brotherly dynamic between Chris Hemsworth's Thor and Tom Hiddleston's Loki has been at the crux of the God of Thunder's solo franchise since the beginning. But after several fake deaths, Loki tragically met his demise at the hands of Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, and while his adventures continue in another universe on Disney+, the God of Mischief remains dead in the MCU.
In the wake of Loki's death, Thor: Love and Thunder will be the first in the franchise not to feature Hiddleston, a detail that has left many worried for the film. Fortunately for fans of the mischievous Asgardian, Loki is currently traveling time and space on Disney+ in Loki - which is expected to return for Season 2 in 2023.
The Disney+ follow-up will see Tom Hiddleston, Owen Wilson, Sophia Di Martino, and the rest of the cast reprising their Season 1 role. Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead will replace Kate Herron in directing duties, and Eric Martin will take over from Michael Waldron as head writer.
As production on Season 2 gets underway amid the release of Thor: Love and Thunder, the director behind Season 1 has offered her thoughts on Marvel Studios' latest big-screen offering.
What Did Loki's Director Think of Thor 4?
Loki director Kate Herron recently caught an early screening of Thor: Love and Thunder and shared her spoiler-free reaction to the latest Asgardian adventure. Herron encouraged her followers to see Love and Thunder, teasing the emotional highs and lows of the film:
"No spoilers just here to say go watch Taika Waititi's Thor: Love and Thunder because it was great fun. I laughed. I cried. Laughed again."
Love and Thunder marks Thor's first solo outing not to feature Tom Hiddleston's Loki; the God of Mischief is currently leading his own Disney+ series in another timeline in the wake of his Earth-616 death at hands of Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War.
Thor actor Chris Hemsworth and director Taika Waititi spoke to CinemaBlend to address Loki's absence in Love and Thunder, joking that Hiddleston didn't want to do a film with people he hates:
"He didn’t want to be involved. He said ‘I hate all of you, and in particular me,’ and I was like, that’s a shame. And that’s it. I mean, how many times can we kill him?"
Hemsworth insisted that they still "love Tom" but instead that Loki remains dead, while Waititi joked that the British star is "dead to [them]:"
Chris Hemsworth: "We love Tom. We love Tom. Yeah. But he’s dead. Not him, but the character of Loki."
Taika Waititi: "No, no he’s just dead to us."
Chris Hemsworth: "He’s obviously dead to us, as far as friendship goes."
Will the Sun Shine on Loki and Thor Again?
"I assure you, brother, the sun will shine on us again.”
Just moments before making the ultimate sacrifice in a bid to stop Thanos, Loki delivered his poetic final words to Thor in Avengers: Infinity War in a way that implied the two will meet again. For now, the MCU appears to be staying adamant that Earth-616's God of Mischief is dead, but the Multiverse may offer the solution to that problem.
Perhaps Thor will one day bump into a Variant of his mischievous brother, possibly even Hiddeleston's redeemed Variant that currently leads his own series. After all, Loki has already established a link between Loki, Sylvie, and Kang the Conqueror, maybe the TVA team will tag along whenever the Avengers finally face Jonathon Majors' villain years down the road.
Whenever that face-off finally comes, if Loki does come along for the ride, the interactions Thor could have with a redeemed and heroic version of his brother could be amazing. Not to mention how interesting it could be to see his reaction to Sylvie, a female Variant of Loki.
Thor: Love and Thunder hits theaters on Friday, July 8. Loki Season 1 is streaming now on Disney+ with Season 2 expected to premiere in 2023.
