With the return of Jane Foster, the addition of the Guardians of the Galaxy, and a villain as evil as Gorr the God Butcher, Thor: Love and Thunder has a lot going on. That’s why, while Tessa Thompson’s character Valkyrie is, indeed, queer in the new film, it doesn’t sound like it’s a big part of that story.
“It becomes the only storyline, particularly in a movie like this where you don’t, frankly, have a lot of room for storyline,” Thompson told Yahoo. “So there was a lot of conversation in terms of how to treat that with Valkyrie. And I feel really good, personally, about where we got to.”
Back in 2019, when news first broke of this fourth Thor film, while most headlines were about the return of Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, who’d become the Mighty Thor, there was also the revelation that Valykrie was going to be the first LGBTQIA hero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That actually ended up being Bryan Tyree Henry’s Phastos in Eternals, but it was still a big part of the development of Thor: Love and Thunder.
“We talked about it a lot, it was big topic of conversation,” Thompson said. “Because I think rightfully there’s this real want in audiences to see characters be very clearly queer or LGBTQIA inside these spaces. And I think it’s hugely important to have representation.”
However, even if King Valkyrie doesn’t find her Queen in Thor: Love and Thunder, the actress believes it could happen in the future. “I hope that she’s a character that fans continue to connect to, that we have a lot of time to explore her, in all of her humanity,” she said. “But whether or not she finds love in this movie doesn’t mean she’s not still a fabulous queer character that is open to finding love when it makes sense.”
Thor: Love and Thunder opens July 8.
Want more Gizmodo news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel and Star Wars releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about House of the Dragon and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
Editor’s Note: Release dates within this article are based in the U.S., but will be updated with local Australian dates as soon as we know more.