When it was revealed that Thor: Love and Thunder would pit the hero against Gorr the God Butcher, excitement among fans went through the roof. That was doubly the case when Christian Bale was cast as the villain, but the God-killer proved to be something of a let-down.
Even Chris Hemsworth has expressed disappointment with how the movie turned out, and if and when Thor does return, there's a chance it won't be in another solo outing.
After Thor: Love and Thunder and Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania both failed to live up to critical and commercial expectations, Disney CEO Bob Iger strongly hinted that the days of third or fourth movies for MCU characters might be at an end.
That could spell doom for Thor 5, but in the newly released Thor: Love and Thunder The Official Movie Special (via Screen Rant), filmmaker Taika Waititi shared his thoughts on the sort of antagonist the Odinson should face next.
"What is left to do to him? It's got to be something that feels like it's carrying on with the evolution of the character, but still in a very fun way and still giving him things to come up against that feel like they're building on the obstacles that he has to overcome."
"I don't think we can have a villain that's weaker than Hela. I feel like we need to step up from there and add a villain that's somehow more formidable."
The filmmaker would go on to share his belief that the Thor franchise "lends itself towards big, inventive, colourful creatures and aliens and things from different worlds," adding "there's a fun element to him and he has a casualness and a sort of swagger about him when he visits these worlds and encounters these aliens that I don't think you'd get when it's an earthling travelling through space exploring the universe."
If another Thor movie happens, we find it hard to believe Waititi will be at the helm.
Just like Thor: Ragnarok served as a fresh start for the hero, we'd bet on the next movie doing the same again. Unfortunately, Thor: Love and Thunder made it clear that Waititi's goofy approach to the character has largely outstayed its welcome. Thor needs to get serious.
What do you think?