We Finally Know Who Richard E. Grant Is Playing In Loki
Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Loki" episode 4
The air in the nerd world has been thick with speculation ever since Marvel announced that Richard E. Grant would be joining the cast of "Loki." The Academy Award nominated actor brought a lot of possibilities to the table. Would he play another version of Loki? A brand new character? Would the MCU's new fascination with multiversal skullduggery mean the return of his "Logan" character, Zander Rice? The smart money, of course, was on Tom Hiddleston's god of mischief going on an interstellar journey to Spice World, although nobody on the internet was brave enough to admit it.
Then "Loki" dropped on Disney+, and fans can be forgiven if they lost track of the fact that the "Withnail and I" actor was supposed to show up at all. There was a lot going on in the first four episodes, what with the Time Keepers and the wood paneled sci-fi tech and the tantalizing promise of jet skis yet to come. Grant's sudden appearance at the end of episode four was doubly jarring. First off, it came unannounced in a surprise post-credits scene. Second, and more importantly ... that costume, right?
Richard E. Grant: Your new god of mischief
The end of Loki's fourth episode, "The Nexus Event," had already given viewers plenty to chew on before the end credits dovetailed into a fevered look at the weirdness to come. After being zapped by Ravonna, an characteristically not-dead Loki wakes up in a post apocalyptic New York City, being dead-eyed by a quartet of Loki variants. There's Jack Veal (who may be familiar to you from "Tin Star" and "The Corrupted") as Kid Loki, pulled from the pages of the comics. Deobia Oparei appears wielding what sure looks like a variation on Mjölnir, while an alligator in a Loki hat, against all odds, exists.
And then there's Richard E. Grant, making his long-awaited debut and wearing what can only be described as a painfully comic-accurate ensemble. Are you one of those Marvel fans that gets all bent out of shape when the costumes in the MCU look different from the ones from the comics? That monkey's paw that you found at the outdoor market just curled another finger. Enjoy the reaping part of the sowing process, knuckleheads.
It appears that Grant is portraying an older Loki, with roots in the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby era of Marvel comics. This could mean a period of introspection for Hiddleston's Loki, who might reconsider his life choices after a chin wag with a version of himself that's spent eons on the losing side of fights with the Avengers. Then again, maybe he'll just take a look at those outside-the-pants yellow briefs and decide to start making bolder fashion statements.