Taika Waititi's Thor: Love and Thunder 'reminds him of home': 'It's nice for Kiwis to feel seen'

Taika Waititi says his second Thor movie will show us a different side to the superhero. Photo / Getty Images

Taika Waititi says his second Thor film is "the best one" yet.

According to the Oscar-winning Kiwi director, Thor: Love and Thunder, in cinemas today, will show us the God of Thunder as we've never seen him before.

"We've really pushed Thor in terms of what he goes through and his experiences - his development spiritually and emotionally," Waititi tells the Herald via Zoom.

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"It's entertaining, it's huge, there's a lot of laughs, and there's a lot of great action sequences, but it's also emotionally satisfying."

But to Kiwi Marvel fans, the movie will feel all too familiar, with several subtle - and not too subtle - nods to Aotearoa. No spoilers, but it wouldn't be a Waititi film without them, or without his turn as the mild-mannered, quintessentially Kiwi-sounding Korg.

"It's just nice for me to remind myself of home," he admits. "Little nods to home and stuff - I think that's just fun, and it's actually selfishly just for me, really.

"But I think it's also nice for Kiwis to be able to see themselves, it's nice for anyone to feel seen and I just like the idea of representation across the board and inclusiveness."

For Waititi, those themes of representation are "a lot stronger" in this film than in most of the Marvel franchise, from references to Māori and Aboriginal culture to the relationships between the characters.

Taika Waititi and Chris Hemsworth on the set of Thor: Love and Thunder. Photo / Jasin Boland, Marvel Studios

"For young kids watching this stuff, they go, 'Oh, but I saw that on Thor so it's normal.' It's just cool," he enthuses.

The film isn't just about the Marvel superhero's physical journey from planet to planet or his mission to defeat the villain - a terrifying Christian Bale as Gorr the God Butcher.

More than anything, it's about his emotional journey as he searches for the answer to the age-old question: What is love?

He's still pining for his ex-girlfriend Dr Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who we last saw in Thor: The Dark World, directed by Alan Taylor.

That film bombed, but then Waititi stepped in and resurrected the superhero's popularity with 2017's Thor: Ragnarok. But Jane was notably missing.

Jane Foster becomes The Mighty Thor in the film, wielding as much power as Thor himself. Photo / Jasin Boland, Marvel Studios

"There were a lot of questions, like what happened after they broke up," Waititi recalls.

"I always wanted to bring her back and with this idea of Thor being in love and experiencing love, it just made sense to bring her back. And what better way to bring Natalie back than to make her a superhero?"

In the film, Thor has to contend with his feelings as he and Jane unexpectedly reunite. Not only that, she's also taken up ownership of his beloved hammer Mjolnir, now wielding just as much power as him - perhaps even more.

"She's just as strong as Thor and she is powerful," Waititi says. "And a lot of times in those fights and stuff, kinda cooler. And that was really important, for little girls to see a kick-ass awesome superhero, there's nothing cooler."

Is this the end of the road for Thor? That depends on Chris Hemsworth, he says.

"I think if Chris was going to do another one, I'd want to do another one.

Tessa Thompson returns as Valkyrie in the film. Photo / Jasin Boland, Marvel Studios

"What we've been able to make together with these films has been really special, and I'm not sure if someone else could do it. It's probably just jealousy and ego that wouldn't want him to do it with anyone else," Waititi jokes.

"It would have to be something that really feels different, that no one is expecting."

Waititi hasn't looked at any other Marvel heroes with an eye to directing - that may be because he simply doesn't have time. He's writing a new Star Wars film and two Roald Dahl projects for Netflix, among other things.

"Most of the ones that I love have already been done, and done really well," he notes - Jon Watts' Spiderman: No Way Home is "one of the greats" in his eyes.

"So I don't know what I would do if there were no more Thors. Probably sleep."