Thor: Ragnarok breathed new life into the Thor franchise by putting director Taika Waititi's unique spin on the God of Thunder. Fans are eagerly awaiting the next installment, Thor: Love and Thunder, which will see the return of Chris Hemsworth as the titular character.
Returning characters for the film include Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, the former love interest of the Thunder God and future wielder of the hammer herself, and Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, the newly crowned King of Asgard, among others.
While production was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, new reports are showing that the film is in the final stages of filming.
LOVE & THUNDER WRAPS IN SYDNEY
With a new post on Instagram, Luca Vannella, Hair Designer for Thor: Love and Thunder, shared a gift from his crew mates to celebrate the completion of filming at the Sydney location.
"Thanks to my team for this thoughtful gift... IT’S A WRAP!!"
Thor actor Chris Hemsworth was among those thanking Vannella for his assistance in the filming, saying, "you saved Thor's look and maybe my career."
THOR STILLING COMING TO THE BIG APPLE
Wrapping up at the primary filming location doesn't mean work is done on Thor: Love and Thunder. Rumors suggest that the production will move to New York City to film new scenes on location. Reports are unclear over exactly which characters will be present in these scenes, so it's difficult to conclude the exact impact they'll have on the story.
Most likely the scenes will help tie the lofty adventure, which will include the Guardians of the Galaxy and a journey to New Asgard as seen in Avengers: Endgame, to the wider post-Endgame state the Marvel universe finds itself in. A film featuring at least one mythical Olympian deity and the dreaded villain Gorr the God Butcher will still need to be tied into the wider universe.
The Chris Hemsworth-starring Love and Thunder is slated to release May 6, 2022 after Spider-Man: No Way Home (December 17, 2021) and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (March 25, 2022). Both of these films are rumored (or in Doctor Strange's case, confirmed) to have multiversal elements. The events of these films are likely to take place while Thor is adventuring with the Guardians of the Galaxy he was seen departing within Avengers: Endgame, so Earth outside of New Asgard may not be as he remembers it.
The wider impact that Spider-Man and Doctor Strange will have on the status quo of the MCU remains to be seen, and will likely be critical to any speculation about where Love and Thunder will leave things. Considering the titular heroes of both films reside in New York, it's likely Thor will have a run-in with at least one of them if he is a part of the new scenes. Thor has visited Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum for advice before. Perhaps he'll do it again when Thor: Love and Thunder hits theaters May 6, 2022.
