Taika Waititi Says His Thor Was for the Greater Good — and Teases His Return in the Latest Avengers Movies
Space Viking is back, blazing toward a high-stakes comeback that turns a rallying cry into liftoff—and a shot at history.
Taika Waititi popped up at Sundance and, as you might expect, he had thoughts about Thor. The short version: he is proud of the goofier, looser Thor he built with Chris Hemsworth, he is not sweating the Love and Thunder backlash, and he is genuinely excited to see the Russo brothers take another swing at the character in the next Avengers movies.
Waititi on handing the hammer back to the Russos
While promoting the family movie 'Fing!' (he voices the main villain), Waititi talked about Thor showing up in 'Avengers: Doomsday' and 'Avengers: Secret Wars' and how he feels about stepping aside for Joe and Anthony Russo, who previously steered Thor in 'Infinity War' and 'Endgame'. He also mentioned he has been tinkering with his Star Wars project, but the headline here is his take on Thor's future.
'Thor was around before me. The stuff that Chris and I did and how we shaped him into that new version... that was for the greater good of the franchise as a whole. I can't wait to see these Avengers movies. I was just watching Infinity War and Endgame two weeks ago. They're so good. I'm good friends with the Russos and will love to see what they're doing.'
Translation: no hard feelings, no regrets. He helped reboot Thor's vibe, now he is curious to see where the Russos take it next.
Quick rewind: how we got here
When Waititi landed 'Thor: Ragnarok' in 2017, he leaned hard into Chris Hemsworth's comedy chops. It worked. Ragnarok is still one of the most acclaimed MCU entries and made $855 million worldwide.
Then came 'Thor: Love and Thunder', which doubled down on the silliness. Audiences were not as into it. It ended up the lowest-rated Thor movie and made nearly $100 million less than Ragnarok globally. Even Hemsworth later said he did not 'stick the landing' that time. Waititi, for his part, is still owning the choice and the results.
Where Thor is headed next
Based on the 'Avengers: Doomsday' teaser, Marvel seems to be nudging Thor back toward a more serious lane. He is on a quest to find Love, his adoptive daughter, played by Hemsworth's real-life daughter India Rose Hemsworth. 'Doomsday' will be Hemsworth's first actual return as Thor since 'Love and Thunder', though the franchise did repurpose 'The Dark World' footage for 2024's 'Deadpool & Wolverine'.
Given Waititi's friendship with the Russos and his openly stated curiosity, I would not be shocked if he turns up at the 'Doomsday' premiere just to see the new direction up close.
Who has steered Thor so far
- Kenneth Branagh kicked things off with 'Thor'.
- Joss Whedon shaped ensemble-era Thor in 'The Avengers' and 'Age of Ultron'.
- Alan Taylor handled 'Thor: The Dark World'.
- Taika Waititi reinvented him in 'Thor: Ragnarok' and pushed further in 'Thor: Love and Thunder'.
- Joe and Anthony Russo balanced him in 'Infinity War' and 'Endgame' and are back in the mix for 'Avengers: Doomsday' and 'Avengers: Secret Wars'.
Odds and ends
'Avengers: Doomsday' hits theaters December 18, 2026, with 'Avengers: Secret Wars' following on December 17, 2027. If you want to catch up on Thor's arc before then, everything is parked on Disney+.
Beyond Avengers talk, Waititi used Sundance to stump for 'Fing!' and also said he is still at work on his Star Wars movie. His next directing gig is 'Klara and the Sun', led by Jenna Ortega, which is expected in 2026.