Thor: Love And Thunder Moments That Really Upset Fans The Most
"Thor: Love and Thunder" is the fourth solo "Thor" film starring Chris Hemsworth as the hunky — if a bit dim-witted — Norse god and superhero. It is also the second Taika Waititi directed entry after 2017's well-received "Thor: Ragnarok."
While "Thor: Ragnarok" wasn't everyone's favorite "Thor" film, it certainly claims that title for many fans, and it's not hard to see why. It was a colorful, funny movie filled with great needle drops, including Led Zeppelin's Viking-themed "Immigrant Song."Beyond that, the film introduced the fan-favorite characters of Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) and Korg (voiced by Waititi himself).
However, "Thor: Love and Thunder" is far from perfect, and there were definitely some disappointing things in it that upset some fans. Furthermore, there were things in the film meant to purposely upset fans. Not out of malice or incompetence, but because tragic or horrifying stuff happens in even the most family-friendly fantasy-adventure movies before they're resolved by the end. Here are the moments in "Thor: Love and Thunder" that bothered fans the most.
Gorr's look
Christian Bale as Gorr the God Butcher in "Thor: Love and Thunder" looks pretty cool, all things considered. However, there were fans on social media outlets such as Reddit who were very vocally upset that he doesn't really look like his comic book counterpart. While Bale's portrayal of the complicated villain has been largely well-received, it makes sense why some fans would be upset. While comic book movies have been notorious in the past for being lax about how they adapted characters' backstories and looks, modern comic book movies (for the most part) have been much more faithful.
Director Taika Waititi said in an interview with IGN that he expected that fans would think Gorr looked like Voldermort, as played by Ralph Fiennes in the "Harry Potter" films. After all, his pale, bald, noseless comic design does emulate the fantasy villain quite a bit. However, at the end of the day, Gorr is still undeniably Gorr, and Waititi felt that the character's story was far more important than any visual similarities to other fictional villains.
However, it is fair for fans to want to have their favorite villains translated as close to the page on screen as possible, so it's understandable (to an extent) why they'd be upset.
Cutting out Gorr's edgy scenes
"Thor: Love and Thunder" is a fun film, but it also touches on some dark moments and themes. After all, the main villain is literally named Gorr the God Butcher, which sounds like the name of a Norwegian black metal band. As such, fans expected to see more intense, mature scenes, some of which were apparently left on the cutting room floor.
In an interview with IGN, Christian Bale, who plays the Gorr the God Butcher, talked about one brutal sequence that never made it into the film. Bale said, "[Gorr]'s a highly religious character at the beginning with tattoos displaying his piousness, and then he becomes disillusioned with that, and then literally just mutilates himself to get rid of that ... It was perhaps a little bit too extreme to be included in the film, but there was a lot of wonderful stuff that we shot."
Great scenes get deleted for a variety of reasons, such as pacing, tonal inconsistencies, or story re-structuring that makes the scene unnecessary. As Bale said in the same interview, "Some things can work, some things don't, and we want this to be a family film. My kids love it."
No Tom Hiddleston as Loki
The morally ambiguous Loki, charismatically played by actor Tom Hiddleston, is a fan favorite for a reason. Loki is Thor's adopted evil brother and eventual arch-nemesis –- essentially the Joker to Thor's Batman. Of course, his true nature and morality became much more fluid over the years, much like the mythical Norse god with whom he shares a name.
Loki made his live-action feature film debut in 2011's "Thor" and has been in every single Thor feature up until now. He's also the star of his own popular Disney+ show, "Loki," which helped introduce the Marvel Cinematic Universe to the multiverse. That's not to mention all the fan art, fan fiction, and general fan worship the character generates.
It makes sense that Loki is absent from the most recent Thor film, as there's really no room for him in the already crowded narrative — not to mention he's currently considered dead to everyone in the current universe. However, that's not going to change the fact that, to many fans, Loki is a central draw to the Thor films, and his absence was always going to upset fans no matter what.
Sidelining Sif
Sif, played by actress Jaimie Alexander, was a major player in the first two "Thor" films. She was originally part of Thor's group of powerful Asgardian warriors who assisted him in fighting off frost giants and Loki in "Thor." Those same warriors later helped bring peace to the universe after the destruction of the Bifrost in "Thor: The Dark World." Unfortunately, she was mostly out of the picture after that. This is a shame because not only did Alexander have great chemistry with Chris Hemsworth, but she was also believable as a powerful warrior.
As such, it was great seeing her again in "Thor: Love and Thunder." Sadly, we don't get to see her fight or really do anything cool. Instead, we see her already defeated after having her arm cut off by Gorr the God Butcher. Beyond that, we also find out that she was only left alive by Gorr so that she could give Thor a warning. Ultimately, it's disappointing that "Thor: Love and Thunder" couldn't find a more interesting role for Sif to play.
No appearance of Beta Ray Bill
Fans speculated that the fan-favorite comics character Beta Ray Bill would appear in "Thor: Love and Thunder." Unfortunately, Beta Ray Bill didn't show up at all -– not even as an Easter egg, as he did in "Thor: Ragnarok."
For those who don't know, Beta Ray Bill made his comic book debut in 1983's "Thor" #337. Beta Ray Bill was an alien warrior who -– despite his extremely monstrous appearance –- was actually an honorable and brave hero, one who was worthy enough to be able to wield Mjolnir.
The reason why Beta Ray Bill is so popular is not just because he was one of the first characters besides Thor to wield Mjolnir in the Marvel universe. He also contributed to the creation of another famous weapon, Stormbreaker. Hopefully, the MCU can find a way to fit him in the next solo Thor adventure.
Not enough Guardians of the Galaxy
The ending of "Avengers: Endgame" implied there'd be a lot of "Guardians of the Galaxy" screen time in the sequel. Some fans even referred to the potential sequel as "Asgardians of the Galaxy." Sure, that title was never confirmed -– and there's also a real comic book run already dubbed that -– but that just goes to show how the possibility of a true "Guardians of the Galaxy" and "Thor" team-up had some fans pretty excited.
To be fair, the entire first part of the movie is an extended montage (and one hilarious action sequence scored to Guns 'n Roses) of Thor working with the famous Guardians team. Still, fans who did want more Guardians of the Galaxy screen time were undoubtedly a bit disappointed, especially since early trailers implied they'd potentially be a bigger part of the plot. Furthermore, the scenes we did get with Thor bumming around with the space-faring Guardians were some of the highlights of the film, so it would have been great to see more of their antics on screen.
Jane Foster's death
The death of Jane Foster, aka the Mighty Thor (Natalie Portman), is one of those scenes that was purposely meant to upset audiences. After all, Portman's portrayal of the new Thor was charming and fun, and it's sad when charming and fun characters tragically sacrifice themselves to save the day.
What's even more upsetting is that she begins the movie suffering from a cancer diagnosis. While Mjolnir seemingly heals her and makes her a literal god, it is also what's stopping her from healing while in human form. This means that anytime she's out superheroing with Thor as Mighty Thor, she's getting closer and closer to death every time she lets go of the hammer.
Her final sacrifice is extremely well-done, with both Portman and Hemsworth selling the sadness and beauty of her ultimate heroic sacrifice. Still, it's upsetting to fans because the film set out to depict a legitimately sad scene.
Korg's (brief) death
Korg, the lovable Kronan rock monster (played by writer-director Taika Waititi), is at one point seemingly killed, to the surprise of Thor and his friends. This happens while Thor, Mighty Thor, Valkyrie, and Korg all head to Omnipotence City, where the different gods of the universe congregate. The heroes are going there to try and warn Zeus (played by a scene-stealing Russell Crowe) about Gorr the God Killer and request the gods' help in defeating him.
However, Zeus doesn't like being ordered around and would prefer to stay hidden in Omnipotence City, which causes a fight between the Asgardians and Zeus. During the attack, Zeus blasts Korg with his famous lightning bolt, which causes him to explode.
This "death" was upsetting for fans, who thought (no matter how briefly) that the film killed off such a lovable character. Luckily, Korg comes back to life, as apparently Kronan's just need their heads to survive.
Bringing Zeus back to life
Speaking of Zeus, at the end of that aforementioned fight between Thor, Mighty Thor, Valkyrie, and Korg, Thor steals Zeus' lightning bolt, which he throws into Zeus' chest, killing him. This allows our heroes to escape from the gods' Omnipotence City with his weapon in tow.
However, at the end of the film, during the patented-at-this-point MCU mid-credits scene, it's revealed that, like Korg, Zeus actually survived the attack. He talks about how the people used to worship gods but now call for superheroes in times of need instead. We then see that he's talking to his son, Hercules (Brett Goldstein), who himself is a lesser-known superhero in the Marvel universe.
Unfortunately, Zeus' death was so satisfying that it's a bit upsetting that he didn't permanently pay for his arrogance. Furthermore, it's not like there weren't other ways Hercules could've been introduced in the post-credits scene –- it could've even happened during a funeral or something, for instance.
Tonal inconsistency
One of the best parts of Taika Waititi-directed films -– from 2007's "Eagle vs. Shark" to 2019's "Jojo Rabbit" — is how he manages to merge and calibrate the disparate tones of comedy and drama. In the case of Waititi's MCU "Thor" films, he manages to blend in action and fantasy as well. When pulled off well, this sort of tonal fluidity can be very memorable and enjoyable since an audience member is thus able to experience a smorgasbord of emotions.
However, that sort of tonal dexterity is hard to pull off at the best of times, and even the greatest filmmakers sometimes stumble. Waititi is no exception. While most critics enjoyed his previous Thor film, 2017's "Thor: Ragnarok," there were some fans who criticized its overuse of bathos and comedy at the expense of genuine emotion. Since "Thor: Love and Thunder" deals with even heavier subjects (such as the death of children and the murder of the gods), the margin of error is even slimmer than ever before.
Gorr's bad comedy
On top of the tonal inconsistency of "Thor: Love and Thunder," there is also its overabundance of humor in general, as pointed out by Twitter users like ComicGirlAshley, katiewalshstx, and BrettRedacted. While there are many great examples of comedy in the film (such Thor's magical axe, Stormbringer, acting like a jealous ex-lover once Mjolnir comes back into Thor's life), there is also a lot of humor that just tries way too hard.
Case in point: Gorr's out-of-place (and honestly out-of-character) comedic scene while telling a story to the (mostly) Asgardian children he's recently kidnapped. For that moment, Bale plays Gorr as a preening Jared Leto Joker knock-off, being overly theatrical in a way that he isn't before or after that scene. Taken in isolation, it isn't a terrible scene on its own, but taken in context with the rest of the film, it seems to come out of nowhere.
Now, it's true that there's always a need for levity in these types films. Not only that, but a lot of the more successful moments in the previous "Thor" films were comedic in nature as well. In fact, Gorr's stark grimness could've been used as a fun contrast to Thor's overly-earnest himbo – similar to how Lee Pace's stoic, self-seriousness take as Ronan the Accuser made Star-Lord's dance-off distraction that much funnier in "Guardians of the Galaxy." However, like Waititi's previous "Thor: Ragnarok," the new Thor film doesn't allow itself to dwell on the darkness for very long, so that everything in "Thor: Love and Thunder" becomes as goofy and inconsequential as everything else, minimizing the stakes. This is especially true when your villain is so inconsistently written and performed.
Deleted scenes could've benefitted film
In an interview with IndieWire, Natalie Portman revealed, "There were whole sequences, planets, characters, and worlds that didn't end up in the movie that were hilarious and amazing and [that] we spent a lot of time and energy on." Now, deleted scenes and abandoned happen with every movie, and co-writer/director Taika Waititi responded to a potential "Waititi Cut" with some harsh words. "I've been thinking about director's cuts. I watch director's cuts of a lot of other directors," he told NME. "They suck. Director's cuts are not good. Directors need to be controlled sometimes and if I was to say, 'Ah, you wanna watch my director's cut? It's four and a half hours long!' It's not good ... There's a lot of cup-of-tea breaks in there."
But is that true? Were all the best ideas shown on screen? As we've mentioned before, there is a curious lack of actual god butchering by the supposed "Gorr the God Butcher." Furthermore, extending the runtime would allow us to see more of the Marvel Cosmos, as well as tie up loose ends with characters from previous films (which — according to Christian Bale – included scenes shot with Jeff Goldblum's Grandmaster and Peter Dinklage's Dwarf Eitri).
Heck, Waititi wouldn't even need to necessarily add to the runtime. He could have culled other plot lines, possibly shortening the kidnapping thread or trimming the time spent with Thor hanging out with the Guardians of the Galaxy (since, while fun, that section did seem to exist more to tie up loose ends from "Avengers: Endgame," rather than being core to the themes of plot of "Love and Thunder"). This could have allowed more time to let Gorr's arc breathe.
Didn't expand the MCU as a whole
After four phases of grand, intertwined storytelling, the MCU rightfully deserves praise for its unprecedented success (especially given how many would-be franchises crash and burn immediately). However, there is nonetheless a large portion of the fanbase who feel that the most recent slate of Marvel movies have been utterly rudderless. And this makes some sense, as the previous phases spent many years leading towards the ultimate conflict with Thanos and the universe-altering Infinity Stones, so there was always a focus of purpose to each successive entry before the final culmination in "Avengers: Endgame."
To be fair, Phase Four of the MCU has seen an influx of multiverse stories, which seems to be the new era's endgame. This started with "Loki" on Disney+, later becoming a main focus for the plots of "Spider-Man: No Way Home," "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," and presumably the upcoming "Ant-Man: Quantumania." However, "Thor: Love and Thunder" didn't touch on any of that at all.
Now, it's not like the film had to address the multiverse, necessarily. There are certainly some fans who prefer standalone superhero adventures existing alongside the inevitable team-ups and crossovers. Still, it's a definite change from the tight plotting that defined the earlier eras of the MCU, making "Love and Thunder" feel somehow off.