Taika Waititi wants to allow Tessa Thompson to explore the queer side of her character Valkyrie in Thor: Love And Thunder.
The Jojo Rabbit director initially shot a scene showing Valkyrie as bisexual for 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok, but it was cut from the final edit – however, Tessa later revealed her character isn’t straight at a Comic-Con fan event last year (2019).
Speaking to Variety, Taika shared that in the upcoming film he would love Tessa to get a queer storyline, but the decision is ultimately down to Marvel Studios and Disney chiefs.
“The IP (intellectual property) is not mine,” he said of whether the character would be explicitly queer.
“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. If Tessa wanted to do that, I’m in.”
As for the rest of the movie, which will feature Natalie Portman’s Dr. Jane Foster taking on the mantle of her old love interest, Thor, the Asgardian ruler based on the Norse god of thunder, Taika said fans can expect the unexpected.
“At Marvel, we always change everything,” he explained. “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.”
Thor: Love and Thunder debuts in November 2021.
