With the new year starting out, it was only a matter of time before we got our first big movie story of 2020. And sure enough, it has come in the form of surprising news that Christian Bale has joined the cast of Taika Waititi's Thor: Love and Thunder. Bale's involvement in the MCU will certainly come as a shocker to fans who obviously know him for his time as Batman nearly a decade ago. Bale has since shied away from any big blockbuster franchises, instead focusing his efforts on several Oscar nominated films over the past few years. But as we've learned over time, no actor is above Marvel Studios anymore, and it seems that its only a matter of time before every big actor in Hollywood finds their way into these movies (I'm looking at you DiCaprio, we're still waiting).
Thor: Love and Thunder has already gained a lot of interest given the fact its the only post Endgame sequel for any of the core members of the Avengers. There's also the return of director Taika Waititi who famously breathed new life into the Thor franchise and character with Ragnarok a few years ago, bringing in a strong comedic influence. Love and Thunder should be no different based on its title alone, so it'll be interesting to see if Bale's more comedic side is brought out for his role in this film.
That role itself is still a big mystery, but at this point three Thor movies in, there's still a few characters from the comics that have yet to make an appearance. One is Thor's brother Balder the Brave, a character that Bale could fit well, but would feel a bit redundant bringing in another sibling of the god of thunder (After we've gotten both Hela and Loki). There's also the chance he'll be playing fan favorite Beta Ray Bill, although this would involve Bale basically having a CGI horse head which would feel odd for such a big name actor. Then again, this is the same studio that cast Bradley Cooper to just voice a talking raccoon so its still a possibility.
The film's story itself is still a bit of a mystery, with the announcement at Comic-Con that it would see the return of Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, a character written out of the MCU until her brief return in Endgame. Foster will be returning so that Waititi can adapt the recent Mighty Thor storyline from the comics, which saw her also get powers and her own hammer after a struggle with cancer. We also know Tessa Thompson will be returning as Valkyrie who is now queen of Asgard, and Waititi himself as the CGI rock character Korg. There's also how the film will handle the storyline started for Thor's character in Endgame, where at its end he seemingly went off to form the Asguardians of the Galaxy with Peter Quill and the gang. It doesn't seem likely this movie will focus on those adventures, but it'll be interesting to see if the team makes an appearance.
So what do you think of Bale joining Love and Thunder? What role would you like to see him play? Let us know below!
