Over the past few days we’ve had a batch of first-look images from Thor: Ragnarok, along with plot details for the Marvel blockbuster, and comments from Cate Blanchett on her role as the new villain Hela. Now EW has unveiled more of its coverage of the hotly-anticipated Phase Three threequel, with actress Tessa Thompson talking about her character Valkyrie, and director Taika Waititi once again discussing the film’s tone and its comedic elements.
“She is originally [from Asgard],” said Thompson, who is making her MCU debut in the film as Valkyrie. “When we meet her and she meets Thor in Sakaar, I can’t really say much about what she’s doing there but she does have a relationship with Jeff Goldblum’s character — it’s a business relationship. She finds Thor and brings Thor to the Grandmaster thinking he might be of interest. The rest is a secret.”
Thompson also spoke about her character’s appearance, adding: “That was sort of a Taika remix. Marvel was really great, like ‘Do what you will with these characters.’ In Ragnarok, you’ll see a Banner like you’ve never seen before. You’ll see Thor with the short hair, which happens when he becomes this gladiator for the Grandmaster. But you really do get to see these established characters in a new way. Obviously if they were really dedicated to the source material they would not have cast me. As far as the armor, she’s such a bad ass that she doesn’t need a lot of metal to protect her. I’m essentially in leather. I have some really cool, like, chain mail like basically with my arms I can sort of shield and use them as weapons as well. I wield two daggers, which are sort of attached to me. And I also have a very special sword.”
Meanwhile, with much being made about the tone of Thor: Ragnarok, Waititi explained that it stops short of being a full comedy, although there is plenty of humour present in the film:
“It’s not really a comedy. There are some really great moments we’re going to have in the film. Knowing that it was Bruce Banner and Thor on kind of a road trip journey, that lends itself to a tone because those guys are both really funny. I was like you gotta exploit Chris’ comic abilities. He’s so good and underutilized in that department. He’s legitimately one of the funniest things in this film. Big Trouble in Little China was one of those films where Jack Burton is a buffoon but he’s lovable and you’re with him the entire way. I thought Thor has got to be the one you want to be with in every scene.”
SEE ALSO: Thor: Ragnarok plot details revealed
In Marvel Studios’ “Thor: Ragnarok,” Thor is imprisoned on the other side of the universe without his mighty hammer and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok—the destruction of his homeworld and the end of Asgardian civilization—at the hands of an all-powerful threat, the ruthless Hela. But first he must survive a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits him against his former ally and fellow Avenger—the Incredible Hulk.
Thor: Ragnarok is being directed by Taika Waititi (What We Do in the Shadows) and features Marvel veterans Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Anthony Hopkins as Odin, Idris Elba as Heimdall and Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk alongside Cate Blanchett as Hela, Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, Jeff Goldblum as the Grandmaster, Karl Urban as Skurge and Sam Neill in an as-yet-unrevealed role. It is set for release on November 3rd, 2017.
Originally published March 11, 2017. Updated November 30, 2022.
