Marvel director Taika Waititi on whether or not he’ll explore Valkyrie’s sexuality in upcoming Thor film
Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie (Marvel Studios)
Marvel director Taika Waititi has said he is “comfortable” to explore Valkyrie’s sexuality in Thor: Love and Thunder, but will take his lead from actor Tessa Thompson.
When asked by Variety if he would like Valkyrie to be explicitly queer in the upcoming film, Waititi replied: “I think so.”
“The [intellectual property] is not mine,” he continued. “But with the actors, I feel whatever makes them comfortable – whether they feel like there’s a natural choice, or a natural way for that character to go – then I’m pretty supportive.”
Waititi added: “If Tessa wanted to do that, I’m in.”
Taika Waititi comments are slightly different from Kevin Feige and Tessa Thompson’s past suggestions.
The director, who won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay last weekend for Jojo Rabbit, has diverged slightly from what Marvel boss Kevin Feige and Thompson have said in the past about the character’s queer identity.
Speaking last year, Feige said Valkyrie will be openly queer in Thor: Love and Thunder.
“How that impacts the story remains to be seen with that level of representation you’ll see across our films, not in just Thor 4,” Feige said.
Meanwhile, Thompson said of her character: “As new king, she needs to find her queen.”
“That will be her first order of business. She has some ideas. Keep you posted.”
With the actors, I feel whatever makes them comfortable – whether they feel like there’s a natural choice, or a natural way for that character to go – then I’m pretty supportive.
Elsewhere in his interview, Waititi revealed that drafts of the script for Thor: Love and Thunder have already been completed.
When asked if Natalie Portman’s character will have cancer in the film, as she does in the comics, he said they “don’t know” just yet.
“That comics run was a big inspiration, and was an influence on the first few drafts. But at Marvel, we always change everything.
“I could say one thing right now, and in two years, it will be the complete opposite — or that thing won’t exist. We continue writing even in post-production.”
Waititi previously warned fans that a Captain Marvel and Valkyrie romance is unlikely.
This process is not based on what Marvel wants, but what the audience wants, he explained.
“We test the film. We shot for two weeks on Thor with our pickups. There were huge, huge character changes, huge story changes. We reshot entire scenes. I think that’s why they do good work. They’re relentless in their pursuit of just a good movie.”
Notably, last year, Waititi said fans shouldn’t get their hopes up about the prospect of a Captain Marvel and Valkyrie romance.
“The thing is, I think it’s dangerous for people to say too much about what they want with Marvel, because then they will tend to go the other way,” Waititi told Wired.
He continued: “You want to listen to the fans to a point. But also you don’t want to have a completely fan-made film because then it doesn’t feel like there’s any point. You want to have people surprised.”
