Chris Hemsworth has denied rumors that Thor: Love and Thunder will be his last time playing the Norse god.
Hemsworth was responding to questions from Polish magazine Elle Man, via Cinemablend.
He said, “Are you crazy?! I’m not retiring. Thor is too young to retire. He’s only 1,500 years old! I definitely am not saying goodbye to the brand with this film. At least I hope so.”
Read more: Christian Bale in talks to star in Marvel’s Thor: Love and Thunder
But Hemsworth’s future was understandably in doubt.
After “Avengers: Endgame” saw the departure of both Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man and Chris Evans as Captain America, Hemsworth became the last original leading actor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
Chris Hemsworth and Taika Waititi attend the Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California on January 7, 2018. (REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni)
However, there’s a good reason why Hemsworth was so adamant about staying on as Thor.
Writer-director Taika Waititi injected further vitality into the franchise with the critically acclaimed and box office smash hit “Thor: Ragnarok,” and he’s hoping to repeat the same success with “Love and Thunder.”
Read more: Director Taika Waititi calls Thor: Love and Thunder ‘crazy’ and ‘romantic’
The next film will see Hemsworth rejoined by Natalie Portman, who will reprise her role as Jane Foster as Thor, the Goddess of Thunder, making her an even more powerful character than she was in both Thor and Thor: The Dark World.
The all-star cast includes Christian Bale, Tessa Thompson, and Waititi himself.
Production is set to begin in Australia in early 2021. Thor: Love and Thunder is scheduled for release on February 11, 2022.