Today's episode of Loki was full of surprises, and getting to spend time with those Variants proved to be a total riot. We certainly fell in love with Alligator Loki (well, assuming he really is a Loki), but it's Richard E. Grant's "Classic Loki" everyone seems to be raving about after watching "Journey Into Mystery."
In an interview with Marvel.com, Loki Head Writer Michael Waldron described the character's introduction as a "thought experiment," revealing that his backstory came from a simple question: "What if Loki did in fact survive the events of Avengers: Infinity War?"
"And I thought, ‘Well, what if that did happen?’" he continued. "And if it did, in fact, how could he have aged up? How could he have lived out his years in a way that the TVA would never come find him?"
"It was that tragic thing where he finally realizes ‘I'm meant to be alone,’" he said of this Loki's decision to spend years in isolation. "It is just so sad. There's a real lesson there for our Loki in that he's going to reject that notion-- that this tiger can change his stripes, and he refuses to be alone. [Loki] wants to do the right thing. [He] wants to see if he can have real companionship in his life."
In the same interview, Tom Hiddleston shared his thoughts on getting the opportunity to play President Loki. While the Variant didn't have a lot of screentime, we did get to see what a fully villainous God of Mischief might look like, and for the actor, "that was quite surreal."
"President Loki is almost the worst of the bad bunch. It certainly felt this way; he's the least vulnerable, the most autocratic and terrifyingly ambitious character who seems to have no empathy or care for anyone else," the actor explains. "Doing them both in the same scene was slightly mad, but in an enjoyable way. And fun, too, because it was about leaning into Loki as a pure villain, or his capacity to be a pure villain."
Whether we'll see any more of these Loki Variants in the Marvel Cinematic Universe remains to be seen. For now, you can check out our breakdown of this episodes biggest reveals by clicking here!
In related news, Loki director Kate Herron has shared a behind the scenes shot of Alligator Loki: