Thor: Love and Thunder is no doubt going to be huge, described as having “an Avengers 5 feel.” That isn't a surprise considering the confirmed casting of Chris Pratt's Peter Quill, Pom Klementieff's Mantis, Dave Bautista's Drax, Karen Gillan's Nebula, and Sean Gunn, presumably returning to perform Rocket's motion capture on set.
Chris Hemsworth already said that filming for the Thor: Ragnarok sequel would start this week. With Jaimie Alexander's arrival in Australia a few days ago, it seems like filming is finally ready to begin.
NEWS
Chris Hemsworth has posted a photo of himself and director Taika Waititi on Instagram standing with indigenous Australian Gamay dancers of the Gadigal and Bidjigal nation, confirming that filming for Thor: Love and Thunder has officially begun:
“A beautiful start to our shoot today with a Welcome to Country ceremony from the Gamay dancers of the Gadigal and Bidjigal Nation and performance and karakia by Maori dancers from Te Aranganui.”
Hemsworth also went on to support changing how and when January 26 is celebrated, as it is seen as the day this indigenous land was invaded by the British, which brought disease, violence, and the destruction of Aboriginal culture:
“Indigenous Australians may be just as proud of this country, but many see January 26th as a date signifying the beginning of dispossession, disease epidemics, frontier violence, destruction of culture, exploitation, abuse, separation of families and subjection to policies of extreme social control. Let’s begin the healing and stand together in unity and support with our First Nations people with solidarity and compassion. Let’s find a date where all Australians can celebrate this beautiful country together.”
The full Instagram post can be viewed below:
WHAT THIS MEANS
This isn't the first time that Taika Waititi has paid respect to indigenous Australians when filming on their lands, as he did the same during the production of Thor: Ragnarok. They had even performed the same Welcome to Country ceremony they did for Thor: Love and Thunder as they did for Ragnarok.
Waititi even made it a priority to hire Indigenous people on the set of Ragnarok, such as directors, stunt performers, set designers, and even grips. No doubt the same case will be for Love and Thunder, which could focus on deeper themes of colonization and culture that Ragnarok only scratched the surface of exploring.
