Star Chris Hemsworth and director Taika Waititi on the reinvention of 'Thor: Ragnarok'
WATCH Chris Hemsworth, Taika Waititi on changing the formula for 'Thor: Ragnarok'
Chris Hemsworth decided it was time to shake things up before stepping back into his superhero costume to play the role of Thor again. So he reached out to Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige to express his desires, then hoped for the best. He talked to ABC News about why he felt the need for change.
"I’ve played the character six times. And I called Kevin Feige and I said we’ve got to do something different here, a new director," Hemsworth said in an appearance on "Popcorn With Peter Travers."
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- chris hemsworth and taika waititi appear on popcorn with peter travers
He added, "I’ve loved every director I’ve ever worked with and every experience was a step to this. But it was like, 'Now, we’ve got to reinvent it. We have an obligation to do it.'"
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Together they landed on the choice of New Zealand director Taika Waititi, probably best known for the films, “What We Do in the Shadows” and “Boy.”
"I was sick of me as this character, and so was Taika,” Hemsworth said. “And we both got together and said, ‘Let’s just wreck everything and redo it.'"
Disney“Ragna-wreck and reinvent it,” said Hemsworth, playing off of the film’s Ragna-rok title.
And wreck it and reinvent it they did, by significantly changing up the character and playing off of Hemsworth’s comedic abilities.
"He broke the hammer, cut the hair and that was part of just stripping it back and redoing it," Hemsworth, 34, told Peter Travers of Waititi’s directorial changes to his character. "And it was incredibly liberating. Taika kept saying, 'I don’t know if it’s going to work or not, just roll the dice. Let’s try it.'"
"So there’s 17 versions of this film in the edit room," joked Hemsworth.
Radhika Chalasani/ABC NewsWaititi said, "Sometimes you have to take risks. And it paid off."
Another big risk was inviting a Make-a-Wish child who was visiting the set to actually write a line for the film. The Make-A-Wish Foundation arranges experiences to fulfill wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.
“He’s there on set," Hemsworth said of the child. "Taika and I are talking in between the setups and the takes, and he knows more about this universe, the Marvel Universe than we do … And then he just started saying, ‘You should say this, say that.’ And he said to me, ‘You should say, 'We know each other. He’s a friend from work,’" about the Hulk.
Hemsworth decided to give the line a try just for the heck of it. He and Waititi loved it so much they kept the line in the film.
“And it’s the best line in the movie. It’s one of my favorite lines,” Hemsworth said.
"Thor: Ragnarok" is in theaters everywhere today.
Be sure to watch the full interview with Peter Travers, Chris Hemsworth and Taika Waititi in the video above.
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